Venezuela, Guyana agree not to use force to settle Essequibo dispute

Guyana and Venezuela have agreed to avoid any escalation of conflict amid a recent heightening of tensions over an oil-rich and disputed border area, the prime minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines said, reading a joint statement after a meeting on the island over the issue.

The two nations agreed "directly or indirectly will not threaten or use force against one another in any circumstances, including those consequential to any existing controversies between the two states," it said in part on Thursday.

The agreement comes after a meeting between the leaders of both countries, Nicolas Maduro and Irfaan Ali, in which they discussed de-escalating tensions in their dispute over the Essequibo region.

Maduro said before the two-hour meeting that "we will make the most of it so that our Latin America and the Caribbean remains a zone of peace."

Ali noted that while both parties are committed to keeping peace in the region, Guyana "is not the aggressor. Guyana is not seeking war, but Guyana reserves the right to work with all of our partners to ensure the defence of our country."

Disagreement over the 160,000-square-km region of Essequibo has run for decades, but Venezuela revived its claim, including to offshore areas, in recent years after major oil and gas discoveries.

Region on edge

Maduro's government held a referendum on December 3 in which 95 percent of voters, according to officials in the government, supported declaring Venezuela the rightful owner of Essequibo.

He has since started legal manoeuvres to create a Venezuelan province in Essequibo and ordered the state oil company to issue licenses for extracting crude in the region — moves Ali branded as a "grave threat to international peace and security."

Guyana has taken the case to the UN Security Council and approached military "partners," including the United States, which has carried out joint military exercises in Essequibo.

The dispute has other South American nations on edge. Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay issued a joint declaration calling for "both parties to negotiate to seek a peaceful solution."

Venezuela insists the Essequibo region was part of its territory during the Spanish colonial period, and argues the 1966 Geneva Agreement between their country, Britain and Guyana — a former colony called British Guiana — nullified the border drawn in 1899 by international arbitrators.

___

Source: TRT