“It is not about waging wars, but about better controlling our exclusive economic zone and (safeguarding) our territorial sovereignty,” says Guyana
Irfaan Ali attempted to ease the conflict with Nicolas Maduro hours after deploying his troops in the Eastern Caribbean of Venezuela. «Neither Venezuela nor any other state has anything to fear from activities in the territory of Guyana or in sovereign waters. I have already reiterated before that we have no ambitions or intentions to covet what belongs to us», underlined the Guyanese leader when he was already the «people’s president.» he had ordered the National Bolivarian Armed Force (FANB) the implementation of a «joint defensive action» in response to the arrival in the waters of Guyana of the British patrol boat HMS Trent.
Like him United Kingdom AS United States of America They are close allies of the government of Georgetown. «It’s not about waging wars, but about better monitoring our exclusive economic zone and (safeguarding) our territorial sovereignty. Nothing we do threatens Venezuela,» the president insisted for his part. The Vice President of Guyana, Bharrat Jagdeo, who added that the arrival of HMS Trent It had been designed for a long time and its capacity is very limited.
However, Maduro ended the “truce” reached between the two countries two weeks ago. And he said it clearly to the strategic council of the region, immediately starting the joint action military exercise called Domingo Antonio Sifontes 2023, which has the deployment of combat aviation, anti-aircraft defense, warships and other weapons systems.
In the first phase the Chavista revolution will unfold 5,682 fighters, several patrol boats and Russian Sukhoi aircraft. Commander of the Navy Neil Villamizar, specify that the military exercises will be carried out in Orinoco Delta It is in the Gulf of Paria. The Maduro government is also under accusation US Southern Command “be in sync” with these actions in what it considers “a direct threat to the peace and stability of the region.”
In his defense, the President of Guyana assured that his country «has long participated in international partnerships aimed at improving internal security. These partnerships do not pose a threat to anyone and they are not intended to be aggressive in any way or constitute an offensive act against any State.»
Both countries spoke to members of the Caribbean Community (Caricom) Yet the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), guarantors of the agreements reached two weeks ago in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The third guarantor of the agreements is the president Lula da Silva, with oil interests in the claimed area.
Essequibo and its Atlantic façade are a disputed territory between the two countries, oil millionaires and administered by Guyana. The launch of this «joint defensive action» recalls the one undertaken in 2009, the famous «winds of war» of Hugo Chavez on the border with Colombia. The justification given then by the «supreme commander» was the announcement of the construction of US military bases on Colombian territory, under the aegis of the then president. Álvaro Uribe. Venezuelan troops moved in heavily, without incident other than some traffic accidents.
