And we also asked the minister his thoughts on the New York Times article about the Belize Territorial Volunteers. It shows Guatemalan Armed Forces being aggressive with unarmed civilians. Hyde said that it's a battle we've long been dealing with, and he's glad the NYT is aware of it. However, he also added that when it comes to the ICJ, he doesn't have much hope for a positive outcome for Belize.
Cordel Hyde, Minister of Natural Resources
"No, I haven't read it. I've only heard some rumblings. But we know that this has been a perennial problem. We know that perennially the Guatemalan armed forces have been have been bullies there. And it's one of the reasons that I imagine a whole bunch of people voted for this matter to go to the ICJ so that we can have a settlement once and for all. I am not as hopeful as most persons. I've never been as hopeful as those persons. But it's a problem that is a vexing problem and it's one that we've perennially had to at the battle with, had to grapple with. It is always the hope that when you have a new president, they say the right things and that they will follow that up by actually having cooperation and engagement with our prime minister so that we can be friendly neighbors and be better neighbors. And we've been waiting for an agreement there for the longest. But The New York Times is finally getting a hold of the what we've known for the longest. They've finally discovered that. And so I guess they will make a big deal about it. But we've had to live with it for all this time and hopefully not for very much longer."
The Times also quotes Guatemala's new foreign minister making ti clear that PResident Bernardo Arévalo's administration would press ahead with its claim to Belizean territory. He added that unlike Guatemala's established borders with Mexico, El Salvador and Honduras, he said "there is no border" with Belize.
