In a strong statement of support for Guyana’s sovereignty, the G7 Foreign Ministers have condemned Venezuela’s recent unlawful incursion into Guyanese territorial waters. On Friday, March 14, after a meeting in Charlevoix, Canada, the foreign ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the High Representative of the European Union released a joint statement denouncing Venezuela’s actions.
The statement expressed firm opposition to Venezuela’s actions, asserting that the Venezuelan naval vessels’ threatening behavior toward Guyanese commercial vessels is an unacceptable infringement on Guyana’s internationally recognised sovereign rights. The G7 reaffirmed its commitment to respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations as a core value.
The statement followed an incident on March 1, when a Venezuelan naval patrol vessel entered Guyanese waters and issued threatening communications with the FPSO Prosperity, an oil rig operated by ExxonMobil. The vessel also communicated with another FPSO in the area. The incursion was widely condemned by regional and international entities, who denounced it as an unprovoked act of military aggression.
President Irfaan Ali took diplomatic action in response to the incident even as he continues to ignore growing calls for national collaborative efforts in the face of Venezuela’s mounting aggression. The People’s Progressive Party (PPP) government announced that the Venezuelan ambassador was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to register Guyana’s protest. The President also revealed that Guyana’s embassy in Caracas was instructed to lodge a formal protest with the Venezuelan government.
This latest escalation follows Venezuela’s announcement in January of plans to hold elections for a governor of Guyana’s Essequibo region on May 25, 2025. The Venezuelan government’s continued disregard for international law and Guyana’s territorial integrity is seen as a provocative and illegal move by the Maduro regime.
In a further step, on March 6, the Guyana Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation announced that it had filed for provisional measures with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) regarding the case of the Arbitral Award of 3rd October 1899 (Guyana v. Venezuela).
The ministry’s statement to the ICJ emphasised that Venezuela’s plan to hold elections in the Essequibo violates the ICJ’s existing orders. The Award was deemed “full, perfect, and final settlement” but years later Venezuela contested it.
Guyana considers that Venezuela’s plan to hold elections in ‘the territory in [controversy]’ flagrantly violates ICJ Order of December 2023. “Guyana’s current request seeks confirmation of this by the Court, as well as an explicit directive to refrain from any electoral activities within or affecting this territory or its population, which consists of Guyanese nationals.”
Throughout the ongoing territorial dispute with Venezuela, Guyana has maintained a diplomatic approach rooted in peace and adherence to the principles of the United Nations Charter and international law.
The Venezuela border controversy, which has been at the forefront of diplomatic tensions between the two countries for decades, was escalated when the previous government of President David Granger, alongside his then-deputy Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo, made the decisive move to take the case before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in March 2018.
The Granger-Nagamootoo-led A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance for Change (APNU-AFC) government sought international legal resolution to the controversy, which centers on the validity of the 1899 Arbitral Award, which awarded the Essequibo region to Guyana. Despite Venezuela’s repeated claims over the territory, Guyana maintains that the Award is final and binding base on the panel’s unanimous decision The case continues to be under deliberation at the ICJ.
