The Government of Guatemala will ask the O.A.S. to once again become involved in settling that country’s claim to Belize. That’s the word from Guatemalan Foreign Minister Jorge Briz, who announced on Sunday that he will be meeting this week in Florida with O.A.S. Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza. Briz’s move appears to come in […]
And while Minister of Information Godfrey Smith was fighting to hold the line in his government’s war against the U.D.P., Foreign Minister Godfrey Smith was on the offensive…against key members of his own diplomatic corps. First to face the firing squad was Belize’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Stuart Leslie. The forty year old Leslie, […]
There is good news for Belizeans who are incarcerated abroad. With the stroke of a pen today in Washington, the Government of Belize advanced the process of making it possible for people who find themselves behind bars in foreign countries to serve their sentences in the real or imagined comforts of the Hattieville prison. During […]
President Bush has made his nomination for the new U.S. Ambassador to Belize. Robert Johan Dieter is currently Director of Clinical Programmes and Professor of Clinical Law at the University of Colorado School of Law in Boulder, Colorado. He previously served in the university’s legal aid and defender programme, has been a lawyer in private […]
It’s not going to change the world, but it just might change how the world sees Belize. It’s called the Belize Foreign Policy Yearbook, 2004 and is designed to keep the international community up to date on the state of the country’s diplomacy and its stance on issues such as foreign trade. According to Belize’s […]
The British Government has announced today its plans to contribute almost a million Belize dollars to the O.A.S. Peace Fund. That fund was established by the Organization of American States as a means of pooling the financial resources of the international community in order to implement projects along the border between Belize and Guatemala. This […]
Even if he wanted to campaign for a favourite Deputy Prime Minister Said Musa would have a difficult task. He left today for the CARICOM Intercessional Summit in Suriname and won’t be back in the country until Friday. Dominating the meeting will be the implementation of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy and the establishment […]
Many Government employees may have been on strike today but that did not mean that the nation’s official business was abandoned. Today the fifth meeting of the Belize-Mexico Bilateral Commission was concluded as the results of the friendly negotiations were presented to the foreign ministers of the two countries. Among the agreements signed were those […]
Despite the upbeat assessment of bilateral relations, both sides acknowledged problems at the border, with Mexican customs officials enforcing strict limits on Mexican purchases in the Corozal Free Zone, the result being a significant drop in Free Zone business. For Derbez, the whole matter can be attributed to overzealous bureaucrats–a situation that will soon, be […]
Belizeans producers and entrepreneurs who are interested in cross border trade with Guatemala now have a new tool to facilitate multi lateral business investments. Under the “Enhancing Commercial Linkages” project, that seeks to promote private sector commercial activities between Belize and our neighbour to the west, a new website was launched this afternoon to promote […]
The Governments of Belize and Guatemala today made the first steps towards enhanced trade and investment relations. According to officials, based on “requests, suggestions and strong pressures” from the private sectors on both sides of the border, formal negotiations are scheduled to begin in early February with the intent of finalizing what is being termed […]
Belize will be closing a number of embassies and consulates abroad, an austerity move which Belmopan says is part of its “home-grown” plan to return the country to financial health. The blue, white and red flag will be hauled down from our high commission in Ottawa, Canada, a mission in Geneva, Switzerland and consulates in […]
Two new diplomats are set to take up positions in Belize. Cuba?s Ambassador designate Eugenio Martinez arrived several weeks ago to replace the highly respected Regla Diaz. Martinez is accompanied by his wife, Johana Tablads, who will serve as consul at the embassy, located in Buttonwood Bay. Martinez will present his credentials in Belmopan on […]
With all the recent political happenings in Belize one can be excused for not getting involved in anyone else’s politics…but if you watch TV, listen to radio or pick up a newspaper it’s an event pretty hard to avoid. I’m talking about the U.S. election and the fact—perhaps I should say hope–that by this time […]
And while the PM’s views on the INTELCO fiasco may be in the minority, his explanation of the impending visit by the I.M.F. seemed somewhat more plausible. Said Musa ?They are coming because I invited them. And they are not coming to prescribe medicine for Belize. They are not coming to give us the usual […]
For the last two decades the United States government has been talking about building a new embassy in Belmopan to replace the charming, but hopelessly vulnerable old house on Gabourel Lane…and now it finally looks like it’s going to happen. In a press release issued today the embassy announced that a construction contract has been […]
Prime Minister Said Musa left the country for Washington, D.C. today to attend the annual meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund. Aside from two days of plenary sessions, the assembled ministers of finance and other officials from around the world will get the chance to compare notes and strategies for surviving in […]
It was Belize’s turn to experience our annual fifteen minutes of fame in New York–or in this case, twelve minutes–as United Nations Ambassador Stuart Leslie joined the World’s leaders to deliver his address to the UN General Assembly. There is no shortage of global, regional and local issues to cover and Leslie did his best […]
Once President Chen was airborne, Prime Minister Musa’s thoughts were no doubt free to return to the matters that were on his plate before the interlude of the state visit. That is, the nation’s finances. And tonight there are signs that his government is making some progress in its bid for some new injections of […]
The delegation was larger than any put together for talks with Guatemala…but then again the stakes are perhaps just as high. The subject was trade and the venue was Geneva, where an eleven-member group travelled to plead the nation’s case for a fair deal to the World Trade Organization. According to a government release, Minister […]
Prime Minister Said Musa will be in Grenada this weekend where he will attend the twenty-fifth CARICOM summit. Two key items on the packed agenda are the single market and economy, and the future of sugar in light of challenges to the present protocol with the European Union. Other important matters for discussion include fisheries […]
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs today launched its first yearbook, offering a synopsis of the country’s foreign policy activities during 2003. The sixty-three page book highlights decisions taken by government on a number of issues including Belize-Guatemala relations, the Plan Puebla Panama Initiative and other regional cooperation programmes. Minister of Foreign Affairs Godfrey Smith says […]
Guatemala would like to conclude a free trade agreement with Belize. That’s the hope of Foreign Minister, Jorge Briz, as quoted in the Guatemalan daily, Prensa Libre. While not abandoning the territorial claim, Briz called for a deepening of relations between the two countries marked by concrete actions that would promote development in the border […]
Prime Minister Said Musa has returned home following his attendance over the weekend at the summit between European, Latin American, and Caribbean leaders in Guadalajara, Mexico. According to a government release, Musa addressed the meeting, calling for increased investment in education, health, and housing along with the concessionary international financing to implement such programmes. The […]
Prime Minister Said Musa, just back from a diplomatic mission in the Far East, continues to rack up frequent flier miles… although this time the destination is much closer to home. On Thursday, he will travel to Guadalajara, Mexico for the third summit between leaders of the European Union, Latin America, and the Caribbean. The […]
