Tensions continue at the Sarstoon

By Breaking Belize News Staff (HP): The Sarstoon is once again in the spotlight.

On Saturday morning, Belize Territorial Volunteers leader Wil Maheia reported seeing a Guatemalan Armed Forces vessel in Belizean waters in front of Sarstoon Island during an early morning trip to the area.

The sighting comes amid rising tensions between Belize and Guatemala.

On September 10, the Guatemalan Navy made an incursion into the Sarstoon. Then, on September 24, a Guatemalan military reconnaissance aircraft entered Belizean airspace, an incursion the National Security Council confirmed this week using radar data.

In response, Government has asked the Organization of American States to investigate the airspace incident and has called on Guatemala to respect long established confidence building measures.

Government has also pointed to multiple incursions by the Guatemalan Armed Forces into Belize’s southern maritime space and threats of the use of force on the Sarstoon in recent months.

Newly appointed Minister of National Security Michel Chebat has pledged to strengthen Belize’s security cooperation and protect the country’s sovereignty.

There has been no official response yet to Saturday’s sighting.

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