From left: Aruba Prime Minister Evelyn Wever-Croes, Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs Wopke Hoekstra; Curaçao Prime Minister Gilmar Pisas and St. Maarten Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs.
WILLEMSTAD--Talks on a technical level are expected to start in the near future between the countries of the Dutch Kingdom and Venezuela to gradually reopen the borders with the South American country, it was announced at the end of the Foreign Affairs consultation of the Netherlands, Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten in Curaçao on Tuesday.
Curaçao Prime Minister Gilmar Pisas stated at a press conference after the Kingdom Foreign Affairs consultation that he suggested hosting the first technical meeting in Curaçao. “We agreed to send an invitation to Venezuela for talks about a phased reopening of the borders and I have offered to have the first meeting in Curaçao,” he said.
“We all support a reopening of the borders with Venezuela, but it needs to be based on solid agreements. Prime Minister Pisas has made a first gesture to have a meeting in Curaçao. I have confidence that it will work out,” said Aruba Prime Minister Evelyn Wever-Croes. In February 2019, Venezuela closed the borders with Aruba and Curaçao. One year earlier, Venezuela had closed the borders with Aruba for a short period.
Shortly, the technical talks will start on how to reopen the borders in a phased manner. “We hope to arrive at an agreement with the largest neighbouring country of the Kingdom. The technical talks are a first step,” said Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs Wopke Hoekstra, who noted that the relations with Venezuela would “always remain complex.”
Asked by the media at the press conference what the timeframe would be of the reopening, Wever-Croes explained that Aruba first and foremost wanted an “orderly” reopening in phases, starting with the maritime border.
If it were up to Aruba, the sea border will first reopen for small commercial vessels to come to the island with fruits and vegetables with lower prices than are currently offered in the supermarkets for imported fresh produce from the US and Europe. After that, larger, private vessels would be allowed from Venezuela, followed by commercial airlines and in the last phase of the reopening, the private jets.
Minister Hoekstra said it was difficult to give a timeframe of the gradual reopening of the borders. “What I can say is that we have agreed to start the dialogue on a technical level. I emphasise that this in no way means that we recognise the outcome of the election results in Venezuela.”
Prime Minister Pisas elucidated that the reopening of the borders for boats with fresh produce was not only important to reduce the high cost of food, but that it was also crucial to re-establish the air traffic with Venezuela so people can travel back to their country. But, he noted, one has to be careful with words in the relations with Venezuela, because “otherwise the door may get shut.”
St. Maarten Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs in her introductory remarks did not speak about Venezuela, but focused on the role of the small island developing states (SIDS) Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten in a Kingdom foreign affairs policy and placing them on the international agenda. “It is important that this Kingdom policy includes a strong SIDS perspective,” she said.
In that regard, Jacobs announced that she called for the recognition of the SIDS multi-dimensional vulnerability index and asked attention for the challenges that SIDS face in areas such as capacity, climate change mitigation and adaptation, and the associated finances. She said it was important that on an international level, the Kingdom portrayed a position that was inclusive of all parts of the Kingdom.
Jacobs said that as a small, non-independent country, St. Maarten had little influence on foreign affairs, yet it was very much affected by the impact of exterior factors like the war in Ukraine, the rising energy cost, the global food and security crisis and the economic fallout due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The war in Ukraine and its impact on the region were amply discussed during the Kingdom Foreign Affairs consultation. “The effects of this horrible war are felt very much by us all. The meeting that we had today [Tuesday – Ed.] is an important forum to discuss how we can improve security and the well-being of us all in the Kingdom,” said Minister Hoekstra.
The three prime ministers and the minister were all very positive about Tuesday’s consultation, the first face-to-face meeting in three years. “It was a good meeting with concrete agreements. The more we work together, the better it is for our people,” said Prime Minister Wever-Croes. “It was an amiable and constructive meeting,” said her colleague from Curaçao, Pisas.
