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The Venezuelan government remains silent about its claim to Essequibo after the dialogue with Guyana
Caracas, December 15 (EFE). – The Venezuelan executive remained silent on Friday in its claim to Essequibo, the disputed territory with Guyana, an issue that has monopolized the Chavismo discourse in recent weeks, with loud, sharp statements and words – ringing words, which It was practically not mentioned today in the government’s speech after yesterday’s meeting between the leaders of the two countries. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro did not appear in public during the day, a time when state broadcaster VTV also lowered conditions and propaganda for the annexation, which had worsened since December 3, when a majority of people voted in a unilateral referendum that they approved. Adding the disputed territory, controlled by Georgetown, to Venezuela. Following the meeting in St. Vincent and the Grenadines of Maduro with his Guyanese counterpart Irfaan Ali – sponsored by Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) – the executive spoke of the “triumph of peace” and the “triumph of diplomacy.” , without referring to the plans of recent days, which included granting oil exploitation licenses in Essequibo. This comes in implementation of the bilateral agreement signed on Thursday, under which the parties committed not to threaten each other or use force in any circumstances related to this dispute, which Guyana insisted was in the hands of the International Court of Justice. ), despite Caracas’ refusal. Suspense and silence. After a week of consultations, Parliament was forced to approve last Wednesday the law annexing Guyana-Esquipa as a new state of the country, as was approved in the referendum. But despite the promise to have the legislation ready, Chavista deputies have stopped talking about this project, at least in the past 72 hours. Among the most notable measures taken by Venezuela is the granting of citizenship to the population of Essequipan and the establishment of a remote government for this region, as well as a military division. Both entities are headquartered in the town of Tomeremo, about 100 kilometers from the point where the disputed area begins. In this regard, the Identification and Immigration Department (SIME) explained that in that town, sessions were held to hand over identity cards to local residents, without reporting, at the present time, the first handing over of citizenship to a person coming from outside the country. The country’s borders are in doubt. Likewise, Maduro’s sole authority for this region, General Alexis Rodríguez Cabello, visited the city of San Martín de Turombang, closest to Essequibo, where the government plans to build about 120 homes for local families and establish an office in that region. The benefits of many social programs can be managed. Case continues Despite the silence, Venezuela’s commitment to annex the 160,000 square kilometers in dispute appears to be progressing in small measures announced on Friday, such as continuing to distribute the new national map, showing the “claimed area” as an integral part of the territory, which would To strip Guyana of two-thirds of its area. For example, the Venezuelan Embassy in Bolivia unveiled the “new map” in its office, the same cartography that has been installed in Venezuelan institutions in recent days and is now smaller in size. Likewise, according to the 2024 state budget, which EFE has access to today, approximately $680 million will be allocated “to increase the logistical, operational and infrastructure capacity” of Venezuela “in the border area” with Essequibo. The government will also allocate, among other smaller amounts, nearly $30 million to “collect historical, legal, geographical and political evidence” on this controversy and just over $40 million to “establish dialogues with Guyana,” which is expected to continue in the coming period. The next three months. This reveals that despite the recent silence, which comes to ease tensions as Maduro and Ali agreed yesterday, Venezuela’s claim remains latent, with resources available to “defend” a region to which it insisted it “belongs.” (c) EFE Agency
