U.S. Ambassador to Guyana, Nicole Theriot, has issued a strong call backing the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) and condemning the criminal elements allegedly tied to Venezuela’s sindicato gangs, who opened fire on GDF patrols along the Cuyuni River last week.
Speaking at an event in Georgetown on Tuesday, Ambassador Theriot confirmed that the U.S. State Department will formally back Guyana. “You will be seeing a very strongly worded tweet coming out of the State Department very soon on that issue and it will make it extremely clear to you where the U.S. stands.”
The U.S. backing comes as tensions mount over a series of aggressive actions by Venezuelan actors near Guyana’s western border, including a planned and internationally condemned electoral stunt in the disputed Essequibo region.
The Ambassador added, “No amount of bluster or sabre-rattling changes the fact that the United States will always stand shoulder to shoulder with Guyana.”
Theriot said, “These are criminals engaging in criminal activity and the United States stands ready to support the GDF in its effort to eradicate this activity along Guyana’s frontier and to ensure the safety and security of Guyana’s people.”
Days ago, GDF troops came under attack by armed men in civilian clothing on the Venezuelan side of the Cuyuni River during routine riverine patrols. While no Guyanese soldiers were injured, the GDF confirmed that it took “appropriate action” in response to each confrontation.
The provocations come as Venezuela prepares to move forward with a May 25 vote to elect local leaders in Guyana’s resource rich Essequibo region, a territory the Maduro administration claims unilaterally, in violation of ongoing legal proceedings at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
Ambassador Theriot strongly condemned the move, calling it a direct defiance of the ICJ’s provisional measures ordering Venezuela to halt such activities.
“We fully support the ICJ provisional measures for Venezuela to halt its so-called elections in the Essequibo… We are extremely unhappy that they made that ill-advised decision to go ahead,” she said.
During another aggressive act on March 1, a Venezuelan Navy vessel entered Guyana’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and sailed past a few oil assets including the Prosperity FPSO.
ExxonMobil operates Guyana’s Stabroek Block and currently has three floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) units online.
