Guyana’s President Mohamed Irfaan Ali says the country has instituted contingency planning to cater for all eventualities as tensions simmer over border dispute between Guyana and Venezuela.
It comes a week before Venezuela holds a referendum on December 3 to seek approval to reject the Arbitral Award of 1899, which fixed the boundary between British Guiana and Venezuela, to formally annex the Essequibo Region by incorporating it into Venezuela as a new Venezuelan state, to give Venezuelan citizenship and national identity cards to the Guyanese population, and to develop the territory as part of Venezuela.
The Essequibo Region comprises more than two-thirds of the whole of Guyana itself.
Guyana has argued that all of these actions are violations of the most fundamental principles of international law, enshrined in the United Nations and OAS charters.
“You will appreciate that because this planning hinges on national security considerations, I cannot reveal the details of our plans,” he told the Sunday Guardian in an exclusive interview last week.
On the specific question of possible military action, he explained that he was going around to regions of Guyana, bordering Venezuela, “to calm and reassure the people there”.
“I have told them that my government is doing everything within its means to ensure their safety. I have also told them that I do not believe that Venezuela will act recklessly. However, I also said that despite this belief, Guyana will remain vigilant and will not be caught unprepared,” he said. Read More
Javeed, A. (n.d.). Guyana heightens military prep as Venezuela’s Dec 3 referendum nears. Www.guardian.co.tt. Retrieved November 29, 2023, from https://www.guardian.co.tt/news/guyana-heightens-military-prep-as-venezuelas-dec-3-referendum-nears-6.2.1861671.b95a05047d
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