Itamaraty discusses Maduro’s annexation plan

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mauro Vieira, discusses the current situation between Venezuela and Guyana with representatives from both countries this Wednesday (22). The two nations have been facing moments of tension following threats from the Venezuelan dictatorship to annex the Essequiba region, which belongs to the neighboring country, to their territory. Brazilian diplomacy has been following the situation with “concern”. The dialogues take place in Brasília, at the Itamaraty Palace, during the South American Dialogue Meeting between Ministers of Defense and Foreign Affairs, organized by Brazil.

On his social networks, the dictator of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, has been betting on a strong campaign to gain support from its population. “The soldiers of the Fatherland are firm in the defense of our Essequibo, with high morale, historical awareness and monolithic unity in the protection of Peace, willing to fight for respect for international rights and the sovereignty of the Venezuelan People”, wrote Maduro in his account on X (formerly Twitter) this Wednesday.

As found out by the People’s Gazette, the topic will be discussed with the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defense of Guyana and Venezuela during the meeting at the Itamaraty Palace. The two countries border Brazil and there is fear, on the part of the Brazilian government, that the situation could escalate into a conflict in the region. Guyana – threatened by Venezuela – hopes to count on Brazil’s help to find a solution to the impasse with Caracas.

At this Wednesday’s meeting in Brasília, the Guyanese government even sent the Prime Minister, Mark Anthony Philips, to participate in the meetings. Philips is the second official after the country’s president. In addition to him, the Deputy Minister of Defense, Colonel Roberts Kenlloyd Marcellius, also participates in the dialogues. The Venezuelan dictatorship sent Yván Gil, the Minister of Foreign Affairs; and Félix Osorio Guzmán, deputy minister of Defense.

On the 9th, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) spoke via videoconference with the Guyanese president, Irfaan Ali. In a statement, Itamaraty reported that the conversation dealt with issues about “regional integration” between the two countries, without mention whether the impasse with Venezuela had been addressed. The Guyanese government stated that the two presidents discussed the Essequiba situation.

Discussions in Brasilia did not reach any agreement

According to Vieira, members of both countries were able to present their questions about the impasse they have been facing to the other countries that make up the sub-continent. Despite the initiative and the long meetings, which began in the morning and ended at the end of the day, the nations were unable to reach a common agreement on the topic.

When questioned, the Brazilian chancellor stated that Brazil’s position is that the impasse in the region that has lasted more than 100 years should be “resolved through peace and fair negotiations”. “Us [Brasil] We have already had border issues with nine neighboring countries and with all of them we have resolved our border differences through negotiation, and we have always been respectful of the agreements reached”, pointed out the Brazilian Minister of Foreign Affairs.

The Minister of State and Defense, José Múcio, also highlighted the need for South American countries to achieve peace. “After long discussions, there is no doubt that we need to join forces to keep South America a peaceful place,” said Múcio. Vieira also reiterated that the Brazilian government and other countries agreed on the need for the determinations of international organizations to be respected throughout the negotiations between Guyana and Venezuela.

Maduro wants support from the population to not follow International Court orders

At Guyana’s request, the topic was also discussed by the International Court of Justice, in The Hague, Netherlands, last week. The body heard representations from both countries after the Guyanese government requested the blocking of at least two “controversial” issues that Venezuela wants to present in a referendum for the population on December 3rd.

In one of them, the Venezuelan dictatorship seeks approval from the population for the decision to annex the county of Essequibo as a state of Venezuela and offer all inhabitants Venezuelan citizenship and identification cards. In the other, the referendum asks Venezuelans to approve the position adopted by the government that the International Court of Justice “would not have jurisdiction to decide on the case”.

At the hearing, which took place on the 15th of this month, the vice-president of Venezuela, Delcy Rodríguez, claimed that “nothing will prevent the referendum from taking place”. The representative of the Venezuelan dictatorship also said that Caracas will not follow the Hague’s rulings on the case.

The dispute over the region has been going on since the 19th century. Nicolás Maduro claims that the region of approximately 160 thousand square kilometers — which corresponds to around 70% of Guyanese territory — belongs to him because, during the colonial period, it was part of the general captaincy of Venezuela. After Spanish rule, the region was administered by the Dutch from 1648 (well before Venezuela declared independence from Spain, which occurred in 1811) and by the United Kingdom from 1814.