Heavy Lobbying, Hard Bargaining (1938–1975)

Abstract

Beginning in the 1930s, Guatemala, no doubt convinced that it would not resolve the dispute favorably by bilateral negotiations with the United Kingdom (UK), initiated a diplomatic campaign to elicit support for its claim. UK felt no need to do this; its stock answer to any query about the claim was that it was in no doubt about its sovereignty over the territory. Belize, on the other hand, developed the strategy of internationalization in the 1970s, utilizing that process not only against Guatemala, but also against Britain’s refusal to either hand over the territory free of any claims or provide a defense guarantee for an independent Belize.