The Netherlands–Venezuela Boundary Treaty is a 1978

treaty A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between sovereign states and/or international organizations that is governed by international law. A treaty may also be known as an international agreement, protocol, covenant, convention ...

between territory of the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

and

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

which delimits the

maritime boundary A maritime boundary is a conceptual division of Earth's water surface areas using physiographical or geopolitical criteria. As such, it usually bounds areas of exclusive national rights over mineral and biological resources,VLIZ Maritime Boun ...

between territory of the

Kingdom of the Netherlands The Kingdom of the Netherlands (, ;, , ), commonly known simply as the Netherlands, is a sovereign state consisting of a collection of constituent territories united under the monarch of the Netherlands, who functions as head of state. The re ...

and Venezuelan territory.Anderson, Ewan W. (2003). ; Jagota, S. P. When the treaty was concluded in 1978, the treaty set out the boundary between what was known as the

Netherlands Antilles The Netherlands Antilles (, ; ), also known as the Dutch Antilles, was a constituent Caribbean country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands consisting of the islands of Saba (island), Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten in the Lesser Antilles, ...

and Venezuela. Today, it establishes the boundary between

Aruba Aruba, officially the Country of Aruba, is a constituent island country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, in the southern Caribbean Sea north of the Venezuelan peninsula of Paraguaná Peninsula, Paraguaná and northwest of Curaçao. In 19 ...

and Venezuela, between

Curaçao Curaçao, officially the Country of Curaçao, is a constituent island country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located in the southern Caribbean Sea (specifically the Dutch Caribbean region), about north of Venezuela. Curaçao includ ...

and Venezuela, and between the

BES islands The Caribbean Netherlands (, ) is a geographic region of the Netherlands located outside of Europe, in the Caribbean, consisting of three special municipalities. These are the islands of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba,"Bonaire, Sint Eustati ...

and Venezuela. The treaty was signed on 31 March 1978. The text of the treaty establishes a complex

border Borders are generally defined as geography, geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by polity, political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other administrative divisio ...

that is set out in four individual

maritime Maritime may refer to: Geography * Maritime Alps, a mountain range in the southwestern part of the Alps * Maritime Region, a region in Togo * Maritime Southeast Asia * The Maritimes, the Canadian provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Princ ...

sectors. Sector A creates the boundary between the ocean west of

and Venezuelan territory. Sector B creates the boundary between the Venezuelan mainland and the

Leeward Islands The Leeward Islands () are a group of islands situated where the northeastern Caribbean Sea meets the western Atlantic Ocean. Starting with the Virgin Islands east of Puerto Rico, they extend southeast to Guadeloupe and its dependencies. In Engl ...

of the Netherlands Antilles (including

Bonaire Bonaire is a Caribbean island in the Leeward Antilles, and is a Caribbean Netherlands, special municipality (officially Public body (Netherlands), "public body") of the Netherlands. Its capital is the port of Kralendijk, on the west (Windward an ...

, and

). Sector C creates the boundary between

and Venezuelan territory. Finally, further north, Sector D creates the boundary between

Isla Aves Isla or ISLA may refer to: Organizations * International Securities Lending Association, a trade association * International School of Los Angeles * International Bilingual School, later named International School of Los Angeles People * Isla ...

(Venezuela) and

Saba Saba may refer to: Places * Saba (island), an island of the Netherlands located in the Caribbean Sea * Sabá, a municipality in the department of Colón, Honduras * Șaba or Șaba-Târg, the Romanian name for Shabo, a village in Ukraine * Saba, ...

and

Sint Eustatius Sint Eustatius, known locally as Statia, is an island in the Caribbean. It is a Caribbean Netherlands, special municipality (officially "Public body (Netherlands), public body") of the Netherlands. The island is in the northern Leeward Islands ...

(Netherlands Antilles). The far eastern point of Sector C and the far western point of Sector D are connected by the west–east

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

– Venezuela boundary, which was agreed to in the

United States – Venezuela Maritime Boundary Treaty United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...

, signed just days before the Netherlands–Venezuela treaty. In places, the boundary lines were adjusted from the natural equidistant lines because of considerations of the placement of oilfields and other mineral deposits in the area. The full name of the treaty is ''Boundary Delimitation Treaty between the Republic of Venezuela and the Kingdom of the Netherlands''.

Notes

References

* Anderson, Ewan W. (2003). ''International Boundaries: A Geopolitical Atlas.'' Routledge: New York.
OCLC 54061586
* Jagota, S. P. (1985). ''Maritime Boundary.'' Martinis Nijhoff: Dordrecht. ;
OCLC 1175640

External links

Full text of treatyFull text
{{DEFAULTSORT:Netherlands-Venezuela Boundary Treaty 1978 in the Caribbean 1978 in the Netherlands Treaties concluded in 1978 Aruba–Venezuela border Curaçao–Venezuela border Boundary treaties Treaties of Venezuela Treaties of the Netherlands Netherlands–Venezuela relations United Nations treaties Treaties extended to Aruba Treaties extended to the Netherlands Antilles

See also

Notes

References

External links