Colorful houses lining a waterfront street in Willemstad, the capital of Curaçao. Photo: Andrés Molina Mesa.
The maritime and aerial borders between Venezuela and the island of Curaçao will be reopened on April 3, Venezuelan Foreign Affairs Minister Yvan Gil reported on Thursday, February 9.
“The Bolivarian government welcomes the reopening of the maritime and aerial borders with the island of Curaçao on April 3, 2023, a decision that will contribute to economic development, social interaction, and strengthening of our historical ties,” the Venezuelan foreign minister wrote in a Twitter post.
El Gobierno Bolivariano saluda la reapertura de las fronteras marítimas y aéreas con la isla de Curazao el próximo 3 de abril de 2023. Decisión que contribuye al desarrollo económico, la interacción social y el fortalecimiento de nuestros lazos históricos https://t.co/rWjuzvWNYW
— Yvan Gil (@yvangil) February 9, 2023
The date was decided after a meeting of the Council of Ministers of Curaçao, which took place on Wednesday, February 8, upon proposal from the government of Curaçao.
“The Council of Ministers will finalize Venezuela’s proposal on the reopening of the maritime and aerial borders on April 3, 2023. It will be finalized in the coming days after discussing the final details and conditions of Venezuela for the border reopening on April 3, 2023,” a statement from the Curaçao government explained.
The borders between Venezuela and Curaçao, an overseas territory of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, have remained closed since February 2019, after Juan Guaidó declared himself the “interim president” of Venezuela and the Venezuelan extreme right tried to forcibly enter the Venezuelan territory with “humanitarian aid” collected in Brazil, Colombia, and the Caribbean islands of the Netherlands (Curaçao, Bonaire, and Aruba).
The announcement of the border closure was made by Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez. The measure included the suspension of flights and the closing of borders, in view of the very real threats of violent intervention in Venezuela.
However, since December 2022, Venezuela and the Netherlands have held a number of meetings to address the situation.
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On December 12, 2022, Vice President Rodríguez met with the ambassador of the Netherlands in Venezuela, Robert Schuddeboom, to address the bilateral relations and to discuss the reopening of the borders with the Caribbean islands of Aruba, Curaçao, and Bonaire.
After this meeting, Venezuela and the Netherlands announced the start of technical talks for the gradual reopening of the borders.
“The reopening process with the ABC islands is part of the efforts of the Bolivarian Diplomacy of Peace, which translates into opportunities for the economic, social, and cultural development of our country and our relationship with our Caribbean neighbors,” then Foreign Minister Carlos Faría had declared.
(Últimas Noticias) by Ariadna Eljuri
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/SC/KZ
