Venezuela President Asserts Claim to Disputed Territory with Updated Map Display
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro unveiled an updated map on Tuesday depicting a contested resource-rich area known as 'Guyana Esequiba' as part of Venezuela, in a move aimed at educational dissemination.
Maduro confirmed plans to distribute the map, including the ‘Guyana Esequiba’ province, in schools and universities. He also disclosed that a law proposing the creation of this new province had been presented to Venezuela's parliament.
The disputed region, recognized by Guyana as ‘Essequibo’, has been a longstanding point of contention between the two nations since the 19th century. Despite a 1899 US arbitration decision assigning the area to then-British colony Guyana, Venezuela never acknowledged the ruling. The matter was referred to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres in 2018, with the Hague-based court asserting its jurisdiction in April.
A recent referendum in Venezuela heavily favored Maduro’s government on the ‘Guyana Esequiba’ status. The vote reinforced Caracas’s rejection of the 1899 arbitration and the ICJ’s involvement, while endorsing plans to grant Venezuelan citizenship to the territory's residents.
Maduro declared immediate actions by Venezuela’s state-run entities to issue operating licenses for oil, gas, and mining exploration and exploitation in ‘Guayana Esequiba’. He also outlined a three-month ultimatum for other firms in the region to withdraw, emphasizing the establishment of an integral defense zone for the area.
This move comes in the wake of a consortium led by US company Exxon Mobil commencing oil production off Guyana’s coast in late 2019 under the Guyanese government’s license, with exports starting the following year.
