Participants at the Regional Foreign Ministers meeting in Belize last week reflected on trends and developments in the international political, economic and security environment. Guyana was represented by Foreign Affairs Minister, Rudy Insanally.
Through a communiqué issued at the conclusion of the May 10-11 Tenth meeting of the Council for Foreign and Community Relations (COFCOR) held over two days from May 10, the Ministers expressed satisfaction with the efforts made by Guyana and Venezuela to maintain good relations, and reiterated their full support for the maintenance of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Guyana.
They noted the endeavours being made by the two countries within the ambit of the Geneva Agreement to find a means of settlement of the controversy that arose from the Venezuelan contention that the 1899 Arbitral Award is null and void.
The Ministers reaffirmed their concern for the vulnerability of the Region to the adverse impacts of climate change and called for concerted action at all levels to address this imminent danger.
They agreed to keep the issue of Climate Change permanently on their agenda and lauded the work being undertaken by the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre, located in Belize .
The Ministers expressed their full support for the appointment by the UN Secretary-General of three Special Envoys on Climate Change, who are tasked with assessing the concerns of stakeholders in the various UN geographical regions over the emerging threats of climate change, and informing the Secretary-General thereon.
In this regard, they called on The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations to convene a special session of Foreign Ministers during the forthcoming session of the UN General Assembly to address the issue of climate change.
The Ministers expressed satisfaction with the advances in CARICOM - Central America relations which were solidified with the signing of the CARICOM - Central America Integration System (SICA) Plan of Action in February 2007.
The Ministers underlined the importance attached by the Community to the Conference on the Caribbean, to be held in Washington on June 19-21, 2007, as a vehicle for deepening and strengthening relations at all levels between CARICOM and the United States .
The Ministers highlighted the fact that the Conference is being organised to facilitate interaction at three levels, government to government, government to people and people to people, and emphasised the Community's commitment to being fully represented at the highest possible level at all the events of the Conference.
The Ministers expressed the Region's grave concern at the continuing deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Darfur and the impact on the neighbouring countries in that African region.
The Caribbean Community has called for an immediate ceasefire and the cessation of violent attacks against civilians as well as aid and relief workers, and urges all parties to the conflict to engage in constructive dialogue in order to achieve peace and stability in the region. At the same time, the co-operative effort between the United Nations and the African Union in working towards the resolution of the conflict was noted, inter alia, through the deployment of a joint peacemaking force to the affected area.
CARICOM called on all parties to work towards a comprehensive solution to the crisis within the shortest possible timeframe in accordance with Security Council Resolution 1755 (2007).
The Ministers also expressed their grave concern over the deterioration of the human rights situation in Zimbabwe , in particular, the continued repression of opposition by the Government and the violation of civil and political rights to assembly and free speech.
The Ministers received a report on the operation of the CARICOM Special Visa Regime implemented for the Cricket World Cup 2007 which expires today. They noted the overall success of the regime, notwithstanding the challenges, and agreed to a process which would include a review of the operations with a view to determining the feasibility of making it permanent.
The Ministers also expressed satisfaction at the successful outcome of the 19th Summit of the Rio Group which was hosted here in March.