Foreign Affairs Minister Dr Amery Browne says T&T cannot insert itself into the current situation involving Guyana and Venezuela.

Yesterday, Venezuela hosted a referendum which it said showed overwhelming support for it to take over the oil-rich Essequibo region.

The vote was held despite an order by the International Court of Justice last Friday which said “pending a final decision in the case, the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela shall refrain from taking any action which would modify the situation that currently prevails in the territory in dispute, whereby the Co-operative Republic of Guyana administers and exercises control over that area”.

Speaking to members of the media today, Dr Browne said he was “disturbed’ by calls from the Opposition for T&T to become involved in the form of mediation or direct negotiation.

He insisted that this would be a direct violation of the policy of Guyana and will not contribute to a progressive environment.

As for T&T’s position on the matter, Dr Browne said it was identical to CARICOM’s.

Following the ICJ’s order, CARICOM issued a statement saying the Caribbean should be respected as a zone of peace and that nothing should be done to disrupt the tranquility of the region.