Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo has said that as tensions with Venezuela rise, Guyana vows to defend itself using all possible measures. The warning is in reaction to Caracas’ recent actions towards reclaiming the oil-rich and long-contested border area of Essequibo, as well as the army of Venezuela being mobilised at the Guyanese border.
“We will protect our nation using every available method,” Jagdeo declared on Wednesday to the Financial Times. He continued, but stopped short of giving further details, saying that Guyana is looking into “stronger defence cooperation” with their partners, particularly the US.
During a phone conversation with Guyanese President Irfaan Ali on Wednesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated again Washington’s support for the nation’s sovereignty.
While acknowledging that the Venezuelan Army much outnumbers the Guyana Defence Force (GDF), Jagdeo said, “We believe we have the capability to deter Venezuela and to thwart any aggressive intent on our country.” In his estimation, Venezuela has 351,000 personnel, compared to the GDF’s 4,070 active men and reserves.
President Nicolas Maduro has ordered the recently mobilised Venezuelan army to the border regions adjacent to Essequibo, or “Guayana Esequiba,” as the locals in Caracas call the area. The most recent attempt by Venezuela to acquire the disputed oil-rich territory is the final in a long line of escalating conflicts that date back to the 19th century.
The US arbitrated in 1899 to assign Essequibo to what was then British Guiana, a move Caracas never recognised as legal. This is the source of the territorial dispute.
Venezuelans backed Maduro’s decision to reject the 1899 ruling and any International Court of Justice authority over the issue with a referendum early in December. It also supported the government’s plan to grant citizenship to Venezuelans who now reside in the region that is managed by Guyana.
Since 2015, when energy behemoth ExxonMobil found oil offshore in the disputed coastal waters of the region valued at an estimated 11 billion barrels, there has been a simmering dispute over Essequibo.
The border dispute is the topic of a scheduled meeting between the presidents of Guyana and Venezuela on Thursday in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
The vice president of Guyana believes the meeting is crucial, despite the president’s earlier this week declaration that the land boundary is not negotiable. “Communication is always necessary, particularly between two nations that will remain neighbours for eternity,” stated Jagdeo.
