This Saturday (10), the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Guyana, Hugh Todd, denounced Venezuela's military movement close to the border in the context of the territorial dispute between the two countries over the Essequibo region.
Todd said Venezuela's actions have a “double standard” because satellite images show a growing Venezuelan military presence near the border.
“There are some inconsistencies based on what they are doing on the international front in terms of diplomacy and what they are doing at home in terms of their military posture,” he argued.
The US-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) released several satellite images that reveal Venezuela was expanding its military base on Ankoko Island and the Punta Barima area near Guyana.
Todd explained that he had already conveyed his concerns to his Venezuelan counterpart, Yvan Gil, at last month's Joint Commission meeting in Brasilia, Brazil.
At the meeting held at the end of January, the two countries committed to continuing dialogue on the dispute over the Essequibo region and even addressing the 1966 Geneva Agreement.
Guyana's Foreign Minister also reiterated Guyana's position that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) would be the only mechanism to be used to resolve the dispute and its commitment to reaching a peaceful resolution.
On the other hand, the President of Guyana, Irfaan Ali, announced this Thursday that he plans to restructure the Guyana Defense Force (GDF), investing in equipment with a focus on technology, assets and collaboration with allied countries.
Essequibo: understand the dispute between Guyana and Venezuela
Boundary disputes over the Essequibo, which occupies two-thirds of Guyana's territory and which Venezuela has claimed for more than a century, began with the Paris Arbitration Award of 1899, which granted sovereignty over the territory to the then British Guiana.
Decades later, Venezuela declared the sentence null and void and signed the 1966 Geneva Agreement with the United Kingdom, which established a commission to resolve the historic dispute, which never materialized.
Venezuela defends the 1966 Agreement as the legal instrument to resolve the dispute over the Essequibo, a 160,000 square kilometer jungle region administered by Guyana, rich in oil, gold and diamonds, among other minerals and precious stones.
However, Guyana relies on the 1899 arbitration award and is committed to resolving the territorial dispute through the ICJ process. EFE
#Venezuela #mobilizes #military #border #Guyana
