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Nigeria to comply with ICJ judgment on Bakassi peninsula: president

Xinhua, May 5, 2016 Adjust font size:

Nigeria would abide by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) judgment on Bakassi Peninsula, President Muhammadu Buhari said on Wednesday.

Speaking at a joint news conference he held with visiting President Paul Biya of Cameroon in Abuja, the nation's capital city, the Nigerian leader said there was no cause for alarm as regards the judgment, saying Nigeria is an internationally respectful and law-abiding nation.

Buhari told his audience that the government would react to the maritime issue after a joint committee of Nigeria and Cameroon experts submits its report.

"On this issue, I want to tell the people of Cameroon to keep their mind at peace," he said.

The president said there was the issue of hydrocarbons in the Bakassi region which was brought to the attention of the International Court of Justice.

He said Nigeria had accepted the judgment, but the technical aspect of the international waters had yet to be fully determined.

Buhari said an international committee of experts from Nigeria and Cameroon was set up and the country was awaiting the report of that committee.

Located on the Gulf of Guinea, Bakassi Peninsula had been the subject of intense and sometimes violent disputes between the two countries for decades.

The ICJ resolved the issue with a ruling in 2002, followed by the 2006 Greentree agreement -- signed under the auspices of former UN Secretary- General Kofi Annan -- under which Nigeria recognized Cameroonian sovereignty over the peninsula.

In his earlier remarks, Buhari appreciated the visit of President Biya and his delegation, adding that the bilateral meeting was fruitful and beneficial to the two countries.

He said the communique had explained in detail what was discussed, but observed that security and the economy were paramount.

President Biya thanked President Buhari and the Nigerian people for the warm hospitality accorded to his delegation as well as the outcome of the deliberations. Endit