Venezuela declared annexation of territory of Guyana and mobilized army

On Tuesday, December 5, President of Venezuela Nicolás Maduro presented a new official map of the country on television, which includes Essequibo. Earlier, the president had deployed military personnel to the Atlantic border of Venezuela, very close to the boundaries of the jungle zone covering 160,000 square kilometers, effectively controlled by Guyana.

On the day of the referendum, the Venezuelan Ministry of Communications circulated a video depicting indigenous inhabitants replacing the Guyanese flag with the Venezuelan one.

The authorities declared the creation of a new province or state in the Tumeremo region. The interim government will be based in Tumeremo, an area known for mineral extraction.

"We seek a peaceful rescue of Guyana-Essequibo. Let's begin to respond to the people who spoke out on December 3. Our Guyana-Essequibo was de facto occupied by the British Empire and its successors, and they ruined this region," said the President of Venezuela.

What preceded the conduct of the referendum

Venezuela and Guyana are in dispute over the ownership of the Essequibo region. Venezuela claims that the region became part of its territory after gaining independence from Spain, while Guyana contends that this territory was part of British Guiana, which later became independent as Guyana.

Referendum in Guyana-Essequibo

On December 3, Venezuela held a referendum on the annexation of part of neighboring Guyana. According to the government, voter turnout was reported at 50%, and the results purportedly reached 95%. However, there were no visible queues or a significant influx of people at polling stations.

Earlier, we reported that Brazil reinforced its border in response to territorial disputes between its neighbors, Guyana and Venezuela.

We also covered Ukraine's reaction to the "referendum" in Venezuela.