BELMOPAN, Belize – Prime Minister John Briceño is heading a high-level delegation to Mexico on Friday for talks with President Claudia Sheinbaum and Bernardo Arévalo, President of the Republic of Guatemala, “to discuss areas of mutual interest among the three neighbouring nations”.
Prime Minister John BriceñoA government statement said that the trilateral discussions will focus on strengthening cooperation in key sectors, including energy, migration, security, the environment, agriculture, investment, infrastructure, and air connectivity.
“The leaders are also expected to explore opportunities linked to major regional initiatives, such as Mexico’s Tren Maya project,” the statement said, adding that this high-level engagement reflects a shared commitment to cooperation among Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize, and “reaffirms the collective undertaking to deepen regional integration, promote sustainable development, and ensure the shared prosperity and well-being of our peoples”.
Foreign Affairs Minister Francis Fonseca told reporters that the meeting is “as a result of a commitment, a shared commitment to biodiversity, preserving and protecting biodiversity.
“So I think there’ll be a signing of a pact, of a shared commitment. It’s not a binding document. But creates legal obligations, but a binding path that demonstrates the commitment of all three countries to the protection of the biodiversity in our shared spaces.”
The discussions are also expected to deal with the repeated incursion of Guatemalan vessels entering Belize’s waters. Last month, the Coast Guard had to calmly escort an armed boat out of Belizean waters after its crew claimed they didn’t realise they’d crossed into Belize. Fonseca said the government is watching these incidents closely.
“We bring that up on every occasion, every opportunity. Mexico will be present. So I don’t know about, the appropriateness of raising that in front of them, but I can assure you that this matter is raised at every opportunity.
“As I reported to you all a few weeks ago, I was in Washington. I met face to face with the foreign minister of Guatemala. We raised the issue, we discussed it at length. On Monday of next week, we have the Minister of Defense and the Minister of Home Affairs meeting with their counterparts. Again, this will be discussed, this will be on the agenda. We take that issue very seriously and we do everything we can to ensure that Belize’s territorial integrity or sovereignty is protected,” Fonseca said.
He acknowledged that it is becoming a pattern of behaviour where even after official complaints are made, the incursion happens again.
““Yeah. We are concerned about it. We are concerned about it. And we do recognise that. Listen, we are on a path to a peaceful resolution of this unfounded claim through the International Court of Justice (ICJ). And we do recognise that these things may continue until we have a definitive judgment from the court.
“But we, as I said, we keep working with the Guatemalans. In every opportunity that we’ve raised it with them, they have said to us, listen, we are going to address this matter. The foreign minister, the president has said we do not support any of those activities. They have said that directly to us we certainly continue to work with them to address that issue,” Fonseca added.
The territorial dispute between the two countries is before the ICJ. It is rooted in historical claims stemming from colonial-era treaties, centers on Guatemala’s assertion of sovereignty over approximately half of Belize’s territory. Both nations have agreed to abide by the ICJ’s final decision.
