Maduro threatens military action in Guyana/Venezuela controversy
, [www.inewsguyana.com], Source
President David Granger and President Nicholas Maduro
Venezuela’s President Nicholas Maduro is set to address the current conflict with Guyana in the Venezuelan National Assembly on Friday, June 26 while threatening military action against any perceived infractions to Venezuela’s territory, Venezuela media is reporting.
On Tuesday, President Maduro reported on its assistance to the plenary session “to present the official position and ask the national union, to ask for support from across the country face the challenge of ExxonMobil.”
He is quoted as saying “I will denounce international manoeuvres… to provoke Venezuela, (it) will not be and I’ll summon the civil union, (the) military to defend our country, our land, our historical positions.”
Another media report states that Maduro took to National television, showing some maps he described as “original from the 19th century” which displays the Venezuelan territory, including the Essequibo.
The Venezuelan President rejected alleged ambitions from international companies to take over Venezuela’s territories.
According to the report, Maduro is claiming “that the British Empire and all the other empires, and now oil company ExxonMobil had always wanted to control the estuary of Orinoco River, in complicity with past oligarchies that failed to defend the motherland through peaceful and respectful diplomacy.”
ExxonMobil’s oil rig, the Deepwater Champion.
ExxonMobil is currently drilling for oil in the Stabroek Block, offshore the Essequibo with the permission of Guyana’s government. The company recently reported on a “significant” discovery of oil in the area.
“One can be a leader, a man with a vision of co-existence, integration, peace. However, a leader has to have the strength to demand respect for his own motherland,” the President is quoted as saying.
Guyana’s government has already rejected to most recent attempts by Venezuela to claim the Territory and has raised the issue with several international bodies including the Organisation of America States (OAS) and Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) have been notified of Venezuela’s claim.
Guyana’s President David Granger has assured Exxon Mobil that it has nothing to fear in terms of its current operations in Guyana’s waters as the company has the backing of the Guyana Government, and international law as it continues exploration in Guyana’s exclusive economic zone.
In the interim, the Head of State said the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has been notified, and he is confident that the Secretary General Dr. Irwin LaRocque has provided some information to the Heads of Government.
However, the President noted that CARICOM Heads would be formally briefed on the situation at the upcoming 36th Heads of Government meeting, which is slated for July 1 to 5 in Barbados.