Guyana Welcomes US Defense Official as Row With Venezuela Over Essequibo Continues

The tensions between Guyana and Venezuela continue as their spat over the Essequibo region may get even more thanks as a US Department of Defense official is set to visit Guyana on Monday and Tuesday, a move that may anger Caracas even further after the United Kingdom sent a warship to conduct military exercises with the Guyanese military.

The visit was confirmed by the US State Department, with US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Western Hemisphere Daniel P. Erikson being the one visiting Guyana in a US push for a "U.-Guyana bilateral defense and security partnership in support of regional stability."

While Guyana and Venezuela agreed in a summit in St. Vincent and the Grenadines to avoid the use of force in their long-simmering feud over Essequibo, Guyana has been beefing up its forces and cozying up to the US and the UK in case Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro breaks his word. Both countries have still deployed troops to their border and these troops have stayed there even after the agreement.

As Reuters noted, the Essequibo region, which is rich in oil and mineral resources and is vastly populated, is generally recognized as part of Guyana. However, Venezuela has recently revived its claims after major oil and gas discoveries, with Maduro launching a referendum to claim Essequibo as part of Guyana.

Currently, Western diplomats have been urging Brazil President Lula, whose country shares borders with both Venezuela and Guyana, as well as having friendly relations with Maduro, to mediate in the dispute.

As for Erikson, he is slated to meet not just with top Guyanese officials, but also military leaders and representatives for the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) during the 2-day visit.

Guyana Sends New Ambassador to Venezuela Amid Essequibo Row

As the two South American countries continue their spat over Essequibo, Guyana has now sent a new ambassador to Venezuela, Dr. Richard Van West-Charles. This was announced by Guyana's Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Robert Persaud, on X (previously Twitter).

"Wishing a successful tour of duty to our new Ambassador to Venezuela Dr Van West-Charles as he prepares for Caracas on January 15 after which he will present his letters of credentials to the president of Venezuela," said the Guyanese foreign affairs secretary in his post.

According to the Trinidad & Tobago Guardian, he is the son-in-law of late Guyanese president Forbes Burnham and served as the Head of the Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) under the former APNU+AFC administration.

The Complicated History of Essequibo

Venezuela and the Essequibo region were originally colonies of Spain. However, Essequibo eventually came under the control of the Dutch and then the British as Venezuela remained under the Spaniards before getting its independence. When the claim over the territory came into question, an 1899 arbitration ruling sided with Guyana.

However, the Venezuelans did not accept this ruling and claimed that the Americans and Europeans colluded to cheat their country out of the land. Guyana has maintained the accord since, but Venezuela never really accepted it. As for Maduro, he is only reigniting the claims after more oil was found in the region.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

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