Venezuela’s Ambassador to Saint Lucia, Leiff Escalona, has reiterated her call for dialogue in the decades-long territorial dispute with Guyana, urging respect for sovereignty and international law.
“To the CARICOM states, the international community, our message is clear: this controversy must be resolved with full respect for sovereignty, international law and the spirit of dialogue,” Escalona said on Wednesday, answering questions at a press conference at the Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. “Venezuela stands for peace, brotherhood and cooperation but it also demands respect for its legitimate rights.”
The remarks come as tensions between Venezuela and Guyana sharpen over the Essequibo region, a resource-rich area west of the Essequibo River that has been contested since the 19th century. The dispute intensified after US oil giant ExxonMobil announced a major offshore discovery in Guyana’s waters in 2015.
Earlier this year, Guyana’s Chief of Defence Staff, Brigadier Omar Khan, pledged to maintain a “smart, modern, and resilient” defence force amid Venezuelan military pressure. In May, Guyana accused Venezuela of attacking its troops near the contested border.
Escalona, however, insisted the origins of the dispute stem from the 1899 Paris Arbitral Award, which granted the territory to the then British Guiana. She described the ruling as illegitimate, calling it “the product of collusion between Great Britain and the United States under the precepts of the Monroe Doctrine.”
“The territory west of the Essequibo River was an integral part of the Captaincy General of Venezuela since 1777,” she told St Lucia Times. “The 1899 award, null and void, stripped Venezuela of its territory without granting it legitimate representation in the process.”
Venezuela, Escalona said, has historically sought peaceful resolution. She cited the Geneva Agreement of 1966, signed with Britain, which established that the controversy must be settled through “a practical, friendly and mutually satisfactory solution”.
After years of unsuccessful mediation of the dispute, Guyana asked the World Court in 2018 to rule that the 1899 border decision is valid and binding. The case is still pending in court.
In an address to the UN General Assembly on Wednesday, Guyana’s President Irfaan Ali said that despite provisional measures by the International Court of Justice ordering Venezuela to refrain from altering the established jurisdictional status quo, it persists with unilateral laws and annexation threats.
“If the rights of a small State can be trampled upon and legally binding orders ignored, what protection remains for any nation under international law?” he asked.
Escalona said her country’s push for a peaceful resolution was reaffirmed in December 2023 with the Argyle Agreement, signed in St Vincent and the Grenadines, where the presidents of Venezuela and Guyana renewed their pledge to pursue a settlement within the Geneva framework.
“However, we must denounce Guyana’s unilateral promotion of resource exploitation in maritime areas whose delimitation is still pending,” Escalona said. “Such actions violate international law and disregard the basic principle of mutual respect.”
She stressed that Venezuela “has never promoted international conflict” and remains committed to the UN Charter, dialogue, and negotiation.
The territorial row unfolds against a backdrop of heightened friction between Caracas and Washington. The United States has increased its military presence in the southern Caribbean, citing efforts to combat drug trafficking. Venezuela, meanwhile, has mobilised troops and security forces, accusing Washington of using the border crisis to extend influence in the region.
