{"id":356566,"date":"2017-09-24T11:49:55","date_gmt":"2017-09-24T11:49:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/citifmonline.com\/?p=356566"},"modified":"2017-11-10T11:12:03","modified_gmt":"2017-11-10T11:12:03","slug":"dont-mock-cote-divoire-over-itlos-loss-ghanaians-told","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/2017\/09\/dont-mock-cote-divoire-over-itlos-loss-ghanaians-told\/","title":{"rendered":"Don\u2019t mock C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire over ITLOS loss \u2013 Ghanaians told"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ghanaians have been advised to celebrate in moderation the country’s victory at the International Tribunal of the Law of the Sea in a\u00a0maritime dispute<\/strong><\/a><\/span>\u00a0case with C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire.<\/p>\n

Security Analyst, Dr. Kwesi Anning who gave the caution on Saturday also admonished Ghanaians not to mock their Ivoirians in order not to create unnecessary tension between the two sovereign states.<\/p>\n

C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire had accused Ghana of overstepping its maritime boundary in the exploration of oil at the West most part of the Cape Three Points.<\/p>\n

[contextly_sidebar id=”b7NtLf3XjGxWuS2rGp6Krx1PjGhLGUEy”]But the ITLOS Chamber in a unanimous decision on Saturday held that, there has not been any violation on the part of Ghana on C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire\u2019s maritime boundary.<\/p>\n

The Chamber rejected C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire\u2019s argument that Ghana\u2019s coastal lines were unstable.<\/p>\n

Speaking to Richard Dela Sky on Saturday, Dr. Anning while welcoming the landmark decision by ITLOS, also said \u201cit\u2019s important for the Ghanaian side that we don\u2019t gloat over this victory, that we don\u2019t make too much noise and tease the other side.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cVictory is an emotional thing and it’s crucially important that we don\u2019t make the Ivoirians feel that they weren\u2019t good enough and that we are smarter than them. Our celebrations must be muted and we must continue to stretch a hand out to the Ivoirians that we are still friends, brothers and that we seek development in a stable, functional, collaborative, inclusive sub region.\u201d<\/p>\n

The security analyst further commended the patience exhibited by Ghana and C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire within the almost a decade long dispute.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat is the best outcome for all of us. This is good for both for Ghana and C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire, it\u2019s good for our institutional processes, good for interstate relations and I think kudos to both parties for having the patience to go through a long rigorous, tiring and sometimes confusion process. So I think as Africans we need to be proud of ourselves today,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Background<\/strong><\/p>\n

In 2007, Ghana discovered oil and gas in commercial quantities, and this was followed by Cote d\u2019Ivoire staking its claim to portions of the West Cape Three Points.<\/p>\n

These claims were renewed in 2010 after Vanco, an oil exploration and production company announced the discovery of oil in the Dzata-1 deepwater-well.<\/p>\n

Cote d\u2019Ivoire\u00a0petitioned the United Nations asking for a completion of the demarcation of its maritime boundary with Ghana, and Ghana responded by setting up of the Ghana Boundary Commission.<\/p>\n

This commission was tasked with the responsibility of negotiating with C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire towards finding a lasting solution to the problem.<\/p>\n

But this commission bore no fruit, and in September 2014, Ghana dragged Cote d\u2019Ivoire to ITLOS after 10 failed negotiations.<\/p>\n

ITLOS\u2019s first ruling in 2015 placed a moratorium on new projects, with old projects continuing after Cote d\u2019Ivoire filed for preliminary measures and urged the tribunal to suspend all activities on the disputed area until the definitive determination of the case.<\/p>\n

The moratorium prevented Tullow Oil from drilling additional 13 wells. Tullow thus drilled eleven [11] wells in Ghana\u2019s first oil field.<\/p>\n

–<\/p>\n

By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey\/citifmonline.com\/Ghana
\nFollow @AlloteyGodwin<\/a>
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