Venezuela holds on to referendum despite warning from International Court of Justice
Guyana had described the referendum as an "existential" threat to the country and called on the ICJ to stop the vote. Without explicitly mentioning the referendum scheduled for Sunday, the Hague tribunal called on Venezuela on Friday not to do anything that would endanger the current situation with neighboring Guyana. In the present case, there is "a serious risk that Venezuela will acquire and exercise control and administration over the disputed territory".
Brazil, the regional power bordering both countries, expressed "concern" about the dispute between Venezuela and Guyana. Brazil has therefore "intensified" its military presence, explained the Ministry of Defense in Brasília.
The referendum in Venezuela is intended to overturn a decision made by an arbitration court in 1899, which defined the border with Guyana - a former British and Dutch colony. For decades, Venezuela has laid claim to the Essequibo region, which is administered by Guyana and makes up more than two thirds of its territory.
The covetousness increased after the oil company ExxonMobil discovered an oil deposit in the area in 2015. In October of this year, another significant oil discovery was made in the region, increasing Guyana's reserves to at least ten billion barrels - more than those of oil-rich Kuwait or the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Tiny Guyana, with a population of just 800,000, has the largest per capita oil reserves in the world, while neighboring Venezuela has the largest proven oil reserves overall. Nevertheless, the socialist-led country is suffering from an ongoing economic crisis.
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Source: www.stern.de
