New Delhi: Amid several conflicts over land across the world, a territorial dispute going back over a century between two small yet significant Latin American countries — Venezuela and Guyana — has been brewing over the past two weeks.
The discovery of massive oil reserves in the Guyana-controlled Essequibo region from 2015 onwards has reignited Venezuela’s 19th-century claims over the land.
Rejecting the International Court of Justice’s warning earlier this month against attempts to “modify” the status quo in the Essequibo region, Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro government in a referendum on 3 December claimed sovereignty over the oil-rich region.
This has triggered a row between the two countries, with Maduro announcing that he would increase efforts to annex the region into Venezuela and that the government would issue ID cards to the local population in Essequibo. The Venezuelan President also proposed that a bill be sent to the national assembly for the creation of a “Guyana Esequiba” province.
Questioning the legitimacy of Venezuela’s referendum, Guyana has put its armed forces on high alert.
While Maduro and Guyanese President Irfaan Ali have reportedly agreed to hold talks on the issue Thursday, the spat has drawn concern from the international community, given the extent of ongoing wars across the globe.
Numerous world leaders, including UN Secretary General António Guterres and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, have pushed the two leaders to de-escalate the situation. The Brazilian President has reportedly been invited to be present as an observer at the Maduro-Ali meeting.
In response to the growing tensions, the US announced joint flight drills with its Guyanese counterparts last week, with the US embassy in Guyana calling the drills “routine engagement and operations to enhance security partnership” between the two nations and “to strengthen regional cooperation”.
Meanwhile, Brazil is reported to have deployed troops along its border with Venezuela.
The United Nations Security Council has held an emergency meeting to address the dispute.
While Guyana has described Caracas’ move on the oil-rich region as one that “threatens international peace and security”, Venezuela criticised the joint US-Guyana military drills as a “provocation” and vowed to push ahead with the “recovery” of Essequibo, according to media reports.
India said Tuesday that the conflict “should be resolved peacefully and escalatory steps avoided”. “We welcome the recent regional diplomatic initiatives on the issue”, the Ministry of External Affairs said.
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron warned Venezuela not to take “unilateral action” in the dispute. Guyana is a former colony of Britain and before that, the Netherlands.
Similarly, members of MERCOSUR, a South American trade bloc, in a joint statement expressed “deep concern” over rising tensions in the region and warned nations to avoid “unilateral actions” in the conflict.
Countries that signed the statement included member states such as Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay as well as non-members like Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.
They have called for both parties “to engage in dialogue and seek a peaceful solution to the dispute”.
Russia, a close ally of Venezuela, has also urged a “peaceful solution” to the dispute.
“We call on the parties to refrain from any actions that could unbalance the situation and cause mutual harm,” Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said last week.
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Origins of the dispute
Lying in western Guyana, the Essequibo region, along its namesake river, covers roughly three-quarters of the country and hosts 1.25 lakh of its 8 lakh citizens.
Its strategic location in the Guiana Shield, rich in natural resources and mineral reserves such as gold, copper, diamond, iron, and aluminum as well as oil reserves, makes the Essequibo region much sought after.
While Guyana believes that Essequibo’s frontier was determined by an arbitration panel in 1899, Venezuela asserts that the Essequibo River forms a natural border recognised as far back as 1777.
In 1814, Great Britain had acquired British Guiana (now Guyana) by treaty with the Netherlands but the treaty did not define a western boundary. Britain subsequently commissioned surveyor Robert Schomburgk to delineate the boundary.
According to the US department of state, the dispute originates in 1841, when independent Venezuela rejected the British-commissioned Schomburgk Line, alleging that it was a British encroachment into Venezuelan land and gave an additional 30,000 square miles (or 77700 sq km) of territory to the then British colony.
Venezuela claimed the Schomburgk Line was a violation of the delineation of territory established during its independence from Spain.
This deadlock continued between Venezuela and Britain for over five decades, till US President Grover Cleveland intervened in the dispute and eventually, the British agreed to Washington’s demands for independent arbitration. However, the settled boundary remained similar to the Schomburgk Line, with a few deviations, in 1899.
While Guyana accepted this resolution and has been abiding by this border since its independence in 1966, successive Venezuelan governments have rejected the border, designated as part of the Arbitral Award of 1899.
The discovery of massive oil reserves in Guyana between 2015 and 2021 has reignited Venezuela’s claims over the region. It has been reported that Guyana would likely cross Venezuela’s predicted oil production and may become the largest per-capita crude producer by 2025.
Impact on India’s oil purchases
Although the dispute is taking place roughly 15,000 km away from New Delhi, it could significantly impact India’s interests, especially within the oil market.
The Israel-Hamas conflict in West Asia and the consequent production cuts from Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) member states has caused global oil prices to become more volatile than ever before.
After Washington eased sanctions on Caracas this October, India is set to resume crude oil imports from Venezuela after three years, with Reliance Industries reportedly booking three tankers scheduled over two months.
Therefore, another conflict involving an oil-rich country like Venezuela could further rock international oil prices, heavily affecting India, the world’s third largest oil importer and consumer.
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)
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