For nearly 50 years, Venezuela has claimed almost all territory west of the Essequibo River as its own. In 1899, an international arbitration ruling granted the land to the United Kingdom, from which Guyana subsequently became independent. But in the late 1940s, Venezuela rekindled the dispute; by 1962, it had begun actively seeking to reclaim the territory.
Exxon Mobil Corp.'s discovery earlier this year of offshore oil deposits in maritime areas that are not legally defined by any agreement between the two countries further stoked the conflict. Since then, Maduro's government has frequently used the oil discovery and the broader disagreement to boost support at home, claiming that the United States and international oil companies are illegally claiming offshore oil resources at Venezuela's expense. In recent weeks, tension has escalated even more: Venezuela held military exercises involving several thousand troops in the eastern state of Bolivar, while Guyana claimed that Venezuelan river patrol craft on the Cuyuni River violated its border.
A recent deal between Venezuela and Guyana will not resolve the two countries' border issues. On Sept. 27, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and Guyanese President David Granger met in New York at a reunion hosted by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon. The two heads of state reached an agreement on Guyana's next ambassadorial nominee to Venezuela, Marilyn Cheryl Miles, who Caracas has refused to accept thus far in light of the Guyanese government's efforts to seek an International Court of Justice ruling that would award it territory to which Venezuela also lays claim. During the meeting, Maduro also expressed his desire to continue dialogue on the territorial issue in the hope of negotiating a resolution.
Despite these seemingly positive steps, Venezuela and Guyana are unlikely to solve their border dispute in the coming months. The spat provides a useful platform for the Venezuelan government's domestic propaganda, and Guyana has no intention of changing its plans to take the dispute to the International Court of Justice. Therefore, further flare-ups in political rhetoric on the issue will be likely in the next few months, particularly ahead of Venezuela's crucial legislative elections in December.
