<html>
<head>
<meta name="generator" content="Corel WordPerfect 10">
<meta http-equiv="content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8">
<style>
p
{
margin-top: 0px;
margin-bottom: 1px
}
body
{
font-family: "Arial", sans-serif;
font-size: 12pt;
font-weight: normal;
font-style: normal
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Arial', sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 14pt"><span style="font-weight: bold">June 14, 2006 <i>(12:05 p.m. EDT)</i><br>
No. 65</span></span></span></p>
<br>
<p style="text-align: center"><span style="font-family: 'Arial', sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 14pt"><span style="font-weight: bold">CANADA CONGRATULATES PARTIES TO THE AGREEMENT
BETWEEN CAMEROON AND NIGERIA REGARDING BAKASSI
PENINSULA </span></span></span></p>
<br>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Arial', sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt">Foreign Affairs Minister and Minister of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency Peter
MacKay today congratulated Cameroon and Nigeria for signing an agreement to fully
implement the decision of the International Court of Justice in The Hague regarding the
territorial border dispute between the two countries.</span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Arial', sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt"> <span> </span></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Arial', sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt">“Canada is pleased that Nigeria and Cameroon have resolved their border dispute
peacefully by agreeing to fully implement the decision of the International Court of
Justice,” stated Minister MacKay.</span></span></p>
<br>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Arial', sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt">“This is an eloquent example of success in the area of conflict prevention,” he added. “It
is also a significant step which will lead to the implementation of, and respect for, a
decision of the International Court of Justice in The Hague, and to the implementation
of the rule of law and the promotion of peace and security.”</span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Arial', sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt"> </span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Arial', sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt">Under the agreement, Nigeria will withdraw its troops from the Bakassi Peninsula within
60 days. Sovereignty over the peninsula had been attributed to Cameroon. The transfer
of administrative authority over the territory will be gradual and will be supervised by an
international committee created for this purpose. </span></span></p>
<br>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Arial', sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt">Canada will contribute $273,000 between 2005 and 2007 to the United Nations’ West
Africa Bureau in support of the Cameroon-Nigeria Mixed Commission’s operations to
demarcate the border between the two countries. </span></span></p>
<br>
<p style="text-align: center"><span style="font-family: 'Arial', sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt">- 30 -</span></span></p>
<br>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Arial', sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt">For further information, media representatives may contact:</span></span></p>
<br>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Arial', sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt">Media Relations Office<br>
Foreign Affairs Canada<br>
(613) 995-1874<br>
</span></span><a href="https://bac-lac.wayback.archive-it.org/web/20070221041109/http://www.international.gc.ca/"><span style="font-family: 'Arial', sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt"><span style="color: #0000ff"><span style="text-decoration: underline">http://www.international.gc.ca</span></span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: 'Arial', sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt"><span style="color: #000000"><span>       </span></span></span></span></p>
</body>
</html>
