Yearbook 2017
Belize. In August, the Guatemalan Congress ratified an agreement to hold a referendum on the border dispute with Belize. According to Countryaah.com, the referendum applies whether the matter is to be decided by the International Court of Justice in The Hague (ICJ), according to an agreement between the countries from 2008. In that case, the referendum would pave the way for a diplomatic and peaceful solution of the infected border issue, which complicated relations between the countries ever since Belize’s independence in 1981.
In September, state oil company ALBA Petrocaribe Belize Energy (APBEL) decided to stop buying oil from Venezuelan oil company PDVSA. The reason was stated to be PDVSA’s problem, in light of Venezuela’s own financial problems, to supply contracted amounts of oil within the framework of the Caribbean cooperation program Petrocaribe from 2009.