“We see with concern this atmosphere of tension between two neighboring and friendly countries”warned the secretary of Latin America and the Caribbean of the Brazilian Foreign Ministry, Gisela Maria Figueiredo.
The diplomat highlighted the importance for Brazil that “at a time when several regions of the world are having military conflicts, South America stay in an environment of peace and cooperation“.
Tension between Venezuela and Guyana due to referendum on the Essequibo
Venezuela and Guyana, that share an extensive border with Brazil, They have a dispute over Essequibo, a territory of 160,000 square kilometers rich in oil and natural resources.
Figueiredo said Brazil maintains a high-level dialogue with both parties to seek a “peaceful solution”including a recent visit to Caracas of Celso Amorim, international advisor to the president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Lula will meet with the president of Guyana, Irfaan Ali, in an aside from the COP28 climate summit in dubai this week, according to the Brazilian press.
But Brazil will not rule on the referendum called for Sunday by the government of Nicolás Maduro, that will ask its citizens if they support granting nationality to the 125,000 inhabitants of the disputed region and creating a new Venezuelan province called “Guiana Essequiba”.
“From Brazil’s point of view The referendum is an internal matter of Venezuela“Figueiredo said, according to the AFP news agency.
Guyana rejected the consultation, and hopes that the dispute with Venezuela can be resolved at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), although Caracas does not recognize the court’s jurisdiction in the case.
Brazil reinforced its northern border by sending troops
Last night, the Basel Ministry of Defense admitted that the country had reinforced its military presence in the north of the country as a result of the territorial crisis between its neighbors.
“The Ministry of Defense has been monitoring the situation; defense actions have intensified in the border region in the north of the country, promoting a greater military presence”the portfolio reported in a statement.
Figueiredo said he had no information about it.
What is Essequibo and what are the riches in the territory?
He Essequibo It has an area larger than that of countries like England, Cuba either Greece and it is a territory with a high presence of natural resources such as minerals and oil. Since 1841 both countries have disputed sovereignty.
The claim for the territory of Essequibo by Venezuela It has a long history. However, since 2015 the Maduro government has raised its voice after vast oil reserves were discovered.
The Bolivarian Republic usually includes the Guyana Essequiba as a region “in claim” and its maps refer to it but in a crossed out manner.
“I tell the leaders of the Cooperative Republic of Guyanathis is resolved as the president has said Nicolás Maduro: with dialogue, with diplomacy, talking, reaching a satisfactory agreement for both parties as stated in the Geneva Agreement“, which Venezuela signed in 1966 with the United Kingdom before Guyanese independence, he then added Irfaan.
That document annulled the arbitration award of 1899, who set the current borders and? Georgetown claims, and established bases for a negotiated solution.
The struggle intensified with the discovery of oil fields in the region and Guyana’s negotiations with the American energy giant ExxonMobil for its exploitation.
Amid an escalation of mutual accusations in recent weeks, the president of Venezuela denounced this Thursday “a dirty campaign” by ExxonMobil against the referendum.
The United States led military exercises in Guyana in July, with the participation of more than 1,500 troops from 20 countries.
Source: Ambito
