THE HAGUE (Reuters) – The World Court on Friday ruled it has jurisdiction to hear a dispute between Guyana and Venezuela over the demarcation of their land border, which may ultimately determine which has rights to offshore oil and gas fields.
In a 12-4 decision, judges at the U.N. court, formally known as the International Court of Justice (ICJ), found that they have jurisdiction to hear a suit brought by Guyana arguing the border was established by an 1899 arbitration between Venezuela and the then-colony of British Guiana.
Venezuela’s government had argued the international court had no jurisdiction and it prefers direct talks with Guyana over its claims to a huge, sparsely populated area west of the Essequibo River.
The court has not yet set a date for arguments on the merits of Guyana’s case.
The ICJ is the United Nations’ court for resolving disputes between states.
(Reporting by Toby Sterling; Editing by Giles Elgood)
