Oil investments in Guyana are under threat amid anticipation of the results of the referendum that Venezuela plans to hold next Sunday, December 3, on a border dispute between the two countries.
The Venezuelan government is making final arrangements for the referendum process on its dispute with Guyana over the oil-rich Essequibo territory, including the deployment of military personnel.
The commander of strategic operations of the Venezuelan armed forces, General Domingo Hernandez Lariz, said on November 29 that he would deploy 356,513 thousand troops to provide security during the referendum.
The minister of the interior, justice and peace, Remigio Ceballos, also said that he will deploy more than 120 thousand police officers, in statements broadcast by the Venezuelan state channel.
The conflict between Caracas and Georgetown has been renewed since international companies such as ExxonMobil announced the exploitation of oil deposits in Guyana, especially in the maritime areas that have not yet demarcated their borders between the two countries.
The escalation of hostilities by both Venezuela and Guyana could affect ongoing processes, such as the easing of US sanctions on Venezuela, the Venezuelan electoral process scheduled for 2024, and even talks between Venezuela and Trinidad for the production and export of natural gas.
The area of 61,600 square miles (159,500 square kilometers) represents two-thirds of the area of Guyana, however, Venezuela has always counted Essequibo as its own, because the area was within its borders during the Spanish colonial period, and it has long opposed the boundaries decided by international arbitrators in 1899, when Guyana was still a British colony.
