The Guyana Defense Force (GDF) said on Thursday that its troops came under attack by armed men in civilian clothing on the Venezuelan side of the Cuyuni River, as tensions escalate ahead of Venezuela’s planned May 25 election in Guyana’s Essequibo region.
According to a statement from the GDF, three separate attacks were carried out within 24 hours along the river between Eteringbang and Makapa. The attacks were launched from the Venezuelan shore by unidentified gunmen during routine riverine patrols conducted by Guyanese troops.
“On each occasion, the Guyana Defence Force executed a measured response, and no rank sustained any injuries,” the GDF.
It reaffirmed its commitment to protecting the country’s territorial integrity and ensuring the safety of its citizens, while pledging to maintain regular patrols along the border.
The GDF “remains resolute in its mission,” the statement read, adding that it will “continue to respond to acts of aggression” and take “all necessary measures to safeguard the nation’s borders and maintain peace and security.”
The confrontation comes just days before Venezuela’s government plans to stage elections in the Essequibo region, which is administered and controlled by Guyana but claimed by Caracas. The vote is scheduled despite an International Court of Justice (ICJ) order prohibiting Venezuela from taking unilateral steps in the area.
Venezuela has long claimed sovereignty over the resource-rich Essequibo region, which makes up about two-thirds of Guyana’s landmass. In recent years, the claim has expanded to include maritime areas off Guyana’s coast, including parts of the offshore Stabroek Block operated by ExxonMobil, where more than 11 billion barrels of oil equivalent have been discovered.
Guyana took the border controversy to the ICJ, which in May reaffirmed a previous order barring Venezuela from altering the status quo in the territory and specifically rejected the election plan. The substantive case at the ICJ centers on the 1899 Arbitral Award, which legally determined the boundary between the two countries. After accepting the boundary for decades, Venezuela declared the award null and void in 1962 and has since claimed over two-thirds of Guyana’s territory in the Essequibo region.
