- Brazil urges restraint
- Tensions rise in Venezuela-Guyana dispute
- Military exercises and territorial claims
As tensions escalated in a territorial dispute between Venezuela and Guyana, Brazil urged “restraint” in response to Caracas’s significant military exercise near the contested, oil-rich Essequibo region.
The Brazilian government is closely monitoring the latest developments in the dispute surrounding the Essequibo region, according to a statement released by the foreign ministry on Friday.
The Brazilian government advises avoiding military displays of support for either party so that the ongoing dialogue process may produce results.
Amid escalating tensions, the HMS Trent, a British warship, also arrived in Guyana on Friday afternoon for open sea defense exercises in its former colony.
As part of a series of engagements in the region, the ship is visiting Guyana, according to the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence, where it will conduct military training exercises with the Guyana military.
The ship uploaded photographs to its X account depicting mariners extending a warm welcome to Brigadier General Omar Khan, the chief of staff of Guyana’s Defence Force, and the British ambassador to Guyana. Additionally, they were extended a formal supper and given a comprehensive tour of the vessel’s functionalities.
In contrast, Venezuela initiated military drills in the eastern Caribbean the day before the HMS Trent arrived, close to its border with Guyana, as the Venezuelan government asserts its sovereignty over a substantial portion of its smaller neighbour.
Venezuela’s Claim on Essequibo and Brazil’s Mediation Efforts
Venezuela has asserted it is the rightful owner of Essequibo for several decades, citing historical recognition of the Essequibo river to the east as a natural boundary along the region’s eastern boundary. The government of President Nicolas Maduro also conducted a contentious referendum on December 3, during which officials reported that 95 percent of voters supported the claim that Venezuela was the legitimate owner of Essequibo.
Subsequently, he initiated legal proceedings to establish a Venezuelan province in Essequibo and directed the state oil company to grant permits for petroleum extraction in the area.
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The escalating tensions have instilled concerns of a potential conflict in the region regarding the remote region spanning 160,000 square kilometres (62,000 square miles).
Guyana, of which Essequibo is more than two-thirds and where 125,000 of its 800,000 inhabitants reside, has been in charge of the territory ever since an arbitration tribunal established the borders in 1899.
Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, the president of Brazil, has assumed the role of a peace mediator in an effort to prevent the disputed Essequibo region dispute from becoming a more violent confrontation.
A conflict in South America is precisely what we do not desire, he stated earlier this month.
The Brazilian statement urged both parties to adhere to a resolution reached during a meeting in the Caribbean between President Maduro and President Irfaan Ali of Guyana, during which they both pledged to avoid the use of force in resolving the dispute.
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