Guyana Receives UK Naval Support Against Venezuela’s Claim In Essequibo Region

The United Kingdom has announced the deployment of a naval ship as an act of support for Guyana during its ongoing border conflict with Venezuela over the oil-rich Essequibo area. The Royal Navy patrol ship HMS Trent will be based off the coast of Guyana later this month, the British Ministry of Defence announced on Sunday.

The decision was made in response to a junior British foreign minister’s recent visit to Guyana, which was intended to show support from the UK for the South American country—an ally and a former British colony.

Although Guyana and Venezuela agreed earlier this month to prevent tensions in their long-running territorial dispute from worsening, Venezuela’s Defense Minister, Vladimir Padrino, stressed his nation’s alertness on social media on Sunday.

The primary source of disagreement is the 160,000 square kilometres of the Essequibo region, recognised mainly as belonging to Guyana. But in the wake of significant oil and gas discoveries, Venezuela has recently reaffirmed its claim to the area, including the offshore territories.

The Ministry of Defence issued a statement confirming the UK’s deployment of HMS Trent; however, it did not specifically address Venezuela or the border dispute. The spokeswoman stated that HMS Trent would be visiting regional ally and Commonwealth partner Guyana as part of a series of regional activities during its Atlantic Patrol Task deployment.

Reference: Reuters

Guyana Receives UK Naval Support Against Venezuela’s Claim In Essequibo Region appeared first on Marine Insight – The Maritime Industry Guide

Source: Maritime Shipping News