As it remains vigilant of increased personnel and exercises on the Venezuelan side of the border and having alerted CARICOM and other nations of this development, the Government of Guyana says that Caracas has explained that the troops were geared at curbing illegal mining in that country.
The Guyana Defence Force (GDF) has also been giving government constant updates and has reported that while it has noticed an increase in troops over in that country’s military base near the border, none of the troops have entered Guyana’s territory.
“We can only go by the GDF reports and give our report based on what the GDF is telling us is happening. Everything the Venezuelans are doing they are doing in Venezuela. We have not seen any incursion or any movement of Venezuela on Guyana’s side,” Prime Minister, Mark Phillips, who is performing the functions of President, last night told the Stabroek News.
A former Chief of Staff of the GDF, the Prime Minister said that it was from the GDF reports that the Venezuelan Ambassador to Guyana, Carlos Amador Pérez Silva was called in and he informed that it was troops “geared towards curbing illegal mining operations”.
Phillips noted that when dealing with sensitive issues such as border matters, governments can only rely on “verified information” and “the reality” and not conjecture.
The Venezuelan troop movements have come amid rising tensions with Guyana over Caracas’ plans to hold a referendum on the question of its illicit claim to the county of Essequibo.
The referendum plan was announced after Georgetown rebuffed demands from Caracas for direct talks on the border controversy between the two countries. Guyana is holding to its position that the matter is now before the International Court of Justice for resolution.
The Prime Minister said that ideally and in normal cases, it would have been best to inform the border country that there will be increased military activity so that citizens on this side would not have been alarmed.
“If you are accustomed to seeing a number of personnel every day and you see a buildup, that is cause for concern. It is natural if you see, over a time, especially in any country an increase [in military presence], it would be a cause for you to ask questions which is what we did. Our troops observed the increase in personnel and this was reported. We did call in [the Ambassador] and you were given the answer. The reality on the ground is what we have to deal with,” the acting President explained.
“… But whatever we are seeing is on Venezuelan side. We received information, we checked, we called in the Ambassador and he offered explanation, and we issued a press release,” Phillips added.
On guard
The release referred to was sent out by government earlier in the afternoon.
“The Government of Guyana has taken careful note of the various social media posts which have reported the mobilization of increased personnel and execution of military exercises by Venezuelan troops in close vicinity to our borders. The Government wishes to advise that every piece of information is taken seriously and is being examined in detail. The Guyana Defence Force has also been reviewing these reports,” the release said.
“To this end, the Venezuelan Ambassador was called in by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation today for an explanation. The Ambassador claimed that the mobilization of troops is geared towards curbing illegal mining operations,” the statement added.
It added, “The Government of Guyana remains on guard and has nevertheless shared the increased military activities by Venezuela taking place on its border with CARICOM Heads and other international partners.”
Unequivocally
Government’s statement was supported by the Opposition which said that it stands unequivocally with it on border matters of this country’s sovereignty.
“We support the statement by government but I think we need to reach out and work together…,” Opposition Leader Aubrey Norton told Stabroek News last evening.
He said that the APNU+AFC supports government calling in the Ambassador to ask for an explanation on the increased military presence.
The Opposition Leader said that while it gives support on border matters, the opposition also believes that government needs to have a structured approach with which it deals with such issues and would be willing to work with it on this.
Norton also expressed the view that the Guyana Defence Force needs to remain vigilant and thanked them for their work.
The Opposition Leader said that the two parties have to separate politics and strategise then show the world that it has a united approach on such issues.
“I also believe the government needs to have a structured approach with the aim of having a clearly worked out strategy and a united approach,” he said.
“We need to reach out and work out, in clear terms, how we deal with the actions of Venezuela and our borders,” he added.
He noted that it seems that President Ali shares this view and Norton told this newspaper that Ali yesterday sent him his cellphone number. However, he said that when he tried calling, he was unable to the get Ali.
The President is currently in Canada attending the meeting between that country’s Prime Minister and CARICOM.
It is not the first time that Ali has reached out to Norton on the border issue. When Venezuela’s decision to hold a referendum to bolster its spurious claim to Essequibo was announced, it initiated a rare briefing by the President to the Opposition Leader.
At the time, Georgetown had stated that it noted with deep concern the decision of the Venezuelan National Assembly to conduct a referendum on defending Caracas’s groundless claim to Guyana’s Essequibo.
It said that this country is of the view that this has the potential to foment tension between the two States.
“Guyana considers that the only appropriate forum for Venezuela to raise its territorial claim, consistent with the rule of international law and the preservation of peace and security, is the International Court of Justice in The Hague which has already determined, twice, that it has jurisdiction to resolve the competing claims of Venezuela and Guyana to the territory in question. Resolution by the Court assures both Parties of a final, binding, and permanent settlement that is equitable, just and consistent with international law”, the government said.
The Government extended its appreciation for the unequivocal support received from friendly governments and organisations, in particular the Caribbean Community (Caricom), the Organisation of American States (OAS), and the Commonwealth. It applauded their principled stand in support of the preservation of Guyana’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
“Guyana’s strenuous efforts to this end will remain premised on respect for the rule of law and the principles of the United Nations Charter,” government has said.
