Latest news with #Mbanie
The Independent
19-05-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Equatorial Guinea prevails in dispute with neighboring Gabon over oil-rich islands
Judges at the top U.N. court sided with the West African country of Equatorial Guinea in a fight with neighboring Gabon over which treaty settled the ownership of three largely uninhabited oil-rich islands. The decision effectively hands the islands to Equatorial Guinea. The countries brought their dispute to The International Court of Justice in 2021, asking judges to determine what legal agreement settles the possession of the oil-rich islands. The 15-judge panel found a 1900 treaty between Spain and France, which divided up colonial holdings, to be the ultimate authority. A later agreement, known as the 1974 Bata Convention, which gives the islands to Gabon, was dismissed as 'not a treaty having the force of law,' Judge Julia Sebutinde said. The document was contested by Equatorial Guinea and Gabon did not produce an original copy for the court. Equatorial Guinea had control of the territory until 1972, when Gabon took over the largest island, Mbanie, in a military skirmish. When oil was discovered in coastal waters, the dispute reignited. The economies of both countries are highly dependent on oil, but production from existing areas has been in decline in recent years. The countries asked the court to settle the ownership question after repeatedly failing in efforts to find a diplomatic solution.
Bloomberg
19-05-2025
- Bloomberg
Equatorial Guinea Wins Rights to Islands in Dispute With Gabon
A top United Nations court ruled in favor of Equatorial Guinea in a long-running territorial dispute with Gabon, awarding it sovereignty over three small islands located in potentially oil-rich waters in the Gulf of Guinea. The case, brought before the International Court of Justice in 2021, centers on the Mbanie, Cocotiers and Conga islands, largely uninhabited isles just off Gabon's Atlantic Ocean coast. The Hague-based court found that sovereignty over Mbanié and the two other islands lie with Equatorial Guinea.
