Territorial dispute between Guatemala and Belize advances in international court

Guatemala presented its reply to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the Territorial, Insular and Maritime Claim of Guatemala and Belize litigation; the representatives were Foreign Minister Mario Búcaro, as well as Ambassadors Gladys Ruiz de Vielman and Rafael Salazar Gálvez.

The delivery of Guatemala’s reply is part of “the second round of written arguments” from each country, according to the government headed by Alejandro Giammattei.

THE CASE

Guatemala recognized the independence of Belize in 1991, but never accepted the borders and continues to claim some 11,000 square kilometers, almost half of Belize’s territory.

The lawsuit filed by Guatemala in 2019 contains “the territorial, insular and maritime claim against Belize” and in it “all the rights inherited from Spain at the time of Guatemala’s independence in 1821” are claimed, as stated in December 2020 the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Central American country.

Due to the foregoing, the ICJ set the deadlines last June, and Guatemala was due on December 8, 2022, and on June 8 of next year, the presentation of Belize’s Rejoinder.

The Ministry of Foreign Relations informed through a press release about the elements presented and their annexes that support the allegations of fact and law in that document.

The entity added that the Republic of Guatemala reflects all the tactical and legal elements that assist the Guatemalan claim maintained throughout the dispute.

In addition, it is the result of a meticulous and professional process by a team made up of experts of the highest reputation and who represent and defend the interests of Guatemala in international litigation.

PROCESS PHASES

The dispute between the two countries was submitted to dispute in the International Court of Justice after Guatemala endorsed in a popular consultation in 2018 to take the case to The Hague in 2019.

The Minex referred in its statement on the background of this process, where on June 7, 2019 Guatemala notified the ICJ of the 2008 Special Agreement and its 2015 Protocol between Guatemala and Belize.

This grants jurisdiction to the Court to hear the case, after conducting popular consultations between both countries.

Subsequently, on June 18, 2019, the ICJ issued the order with which it set the deadlines to carry out the first round of written arguments.

In addition, it determined that on June 8, 2020, Guatemala submitted its Memorial (application) and Belize its Counter-Memorial on June 8, 2021.

With information from Bloomberg Línea

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