The maritime borders between Venezuela and Aruba have been reopened after being closed for four years, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Caracas informed yesterday.
“After more than four years, the maritime borders between Aruba and Venezuela are opened. The opening of the air connections is still in process,” the embassy informed, detailing that the maritime crossing was opened as of Monday.
The border crossings opened after Aruba proposed to Caracas last February to restart the maritime connections for the benefit of both peoples.
“The first phase will be the maritime border, to be able to import cheaper products from Venezuela, such as fruits, vegetables, groceries, and construction materials. That will help us to lower living costs,” the Aruban government previously stated about the reconnection process with Venezuela.
Last month, Venezuela opened the maritime border with the island of Curaçao, also belonging to the Netherlands. Caracas described this as “a decision that contributes to economic development, social interaction, and the strengthening of our historical ties”.
This is a progressive process of rapprochement between Venezuela and the Caribbean islands of Aruba, Curaçao, and Bonaire (known as the Netherlands Antilles), which began in December last year with technical conversations between both countries.