C.E.O. George Lovell Speaks on SI Annulment
The P.U.P. may not be showing much enthusiasm just yet, but for Ministry of National Security C.E.O. George Lovell the agreement is a welcome one. We’ve all seen the footage where Guatemalan forces descended on the B.D.F.’s Forward Operating Base, and it wasn’t to borrow sugar from a good neighbor. We’ve also seen footage of Guatemalan gunboats maneuvering to block the B.D.F.’s entry into the Sarstoon to changeover troops at Cadenas. The area has been volatile for a long time, and lately it’s becoming increasingly hostile. So Lovell is understandably pleased with the news he got today.
On the Phone: Ret’d. Col. George Lovell, CEO, Ministry of National Security
“Those are the kinds of decisions we hope that these talks that we have at the Foreign Affairs and Defence levels would result in, and so we certainly welcome it. Obviously from the release sent out by government it was a decision by Cabinet and as a result the Government of Belize has asked the Governor-General his Excellency Colville Young to find this Statutory Instrument which in effect would revoke the Sarstoon Prohibition S.I. Certainly the Ministry of national security and indeed the B.D.F. and the Coast Guard and all our law enforcement people who we have on the ground certainly appreciate it.”
Mike Rudon
“Sir could you tell us how it will immediately affect the movement of military personnel on the ground because we know that up to this weekend there was heavy presence by Coast Guard and Police in the area of PG, Barranco and the Sarstoon.”
On the Phone: Ret’d. Col. George Lovell
“We will continue to maintain our normal operation posture that we have within the Forward Operating Base. That will not be reduced. We will obviously, with this SI being revoked and the fact that both our Foreign Ministers have again agreed to express their commitment to peace and good faith and have reiterated that the existing territorial and insular maritime differendum should be resolved by the International Court of Justice – once obviously the referenda actually causes that to happen we believe that it is necessary to definitely between now and then promote good relationships with our neighbours and this decision that the two Ministers have agreed to will certainly set the stage for our military to work closely with their military in building the kind of confidence building measures that obviously will be required.”
C.E.O. Lovell says that he is confident that the political will expressed in Istanbul will be transmitted effectively to the military personnel at the Sarstoon.
