Arbitral Award of 3 October 1899 (Guyana v. Venezuela) - Conclusion of the public hearings on the preliminary objections raised by Venezuela - The Court to begin its deliberation

INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE
Peace Palace, Carnegieplein 2, 2517 KJ The Hague, Netherlands
Tel.: +31 (0)70 302 2323 Fax: +31 (0)70 364 9928
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Press Release
Unofficial
No. 2022/65
22 November 2022
Arbitral Award of 3 October 1899 (Guyana v. Venezuela) Conclusion of the public hearings on the preliminary objections raised by Venezuela The Court to begin its deliberation
THE HAGUE, 22 November 2022. The public hearings on the preliminary objections raised by Venezuela in the case concerning the Arbitral Award of 3 October 1899 (Guyana v. Venezuela) were concluded today. The Court will now begin its deliberation.
During the hearings, which opened on Thursday 17 November 2022 at the Peace Palace, the seat of the Court, the delegation of Venezuela was led by H.E. Mr. Samuel Moncada, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to the United Nations, as Agent. The delegation of Guyana was led by the Hon. Carl B. Greenidge, as Agent.
The Court’s decision on the preliminary objections will be delivered at a public sitting, the date of which will be announced in due course.
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Submissions of the Parties
At the end of the hearings, the Agents of the Parties presented the following submissions to the Court:
For Venezuela:
“In the case concerning the Arbitral Award of 3 October 1899 (Guyana v. Venezuela), for the reasons set forth in its written and oral pleadings on preliminary objections, the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela requests the Court to adjudge and declare that Guyana’s claims are inadmissible.”
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For Guyana:
“In accordance with Article 60 of the Rules of Court, for the reasons explained in our Written Observations of 22 July 2022 and during these hearings, the Co-Operative Republic of Guyana respectfully asks the Court:
(a) Pursuant to Article 79ter, paragraph 4, of the Rules, to reject Venezuela’s preliminary objections as inadmissible or reject them on the basis of the Parties’ submissions; and
(b) To fix a date for the submission of Venezuela’s Counter-Memorial on the Merits no later than nine months from the date of the Court’s ruling on Venezuela’s preliminary objections.”
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History of the proceedings
The history of the proceedings can be found in press releases Nos. 2018/17, 2020/18, 2020/37 and 2022/57, available on the Court’s website.
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Note: The Court’s press releases are prepared by its Registry for information purposes only and do not constitute official documents. The complete verbatim records of the hearings held from 17 to 22 November will be published on the Court’s website.
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The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. It was established by the United Nations Charter in June 1945 and began its activities in April 1946. The Court is composed of 15 judges elected for a nine-year term by the General Assembly and the Security Council of the United Nations. The seat of the Court is at the Peace Palace in The Hague (Netherlands). The Court has a twofold role: first, to settle, in accordance with international law, through judgments which have binding force and are without appeal for the parties concerned, legal disputes submitted to it by States; and, second, to give advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by duly authorized United Nations organs and agencies of the system.
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Information Department:
Mr. Andrey Poskakukhin, First Secretary of the Court, Head of Department (+31 (0)70 302 2336)
Ms Joanne Moore, Information Officer (+31 (0)70 302 2337)
Mr. Avo Sevag Garabet, Associate Information Officer (+31 (0)70 302 2394)
Ms Genoveva Madurga, Administrative Assistant (+31 (0)70 302 2396)