UK sends warship to Guyana. Diplomatic and military support for its former colony against a backdrop of tensions with Venezuela which claims part of the territory.
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The United Kingdom announced this Sunday, December 24, the deployment of HMS Trent, a military patrol ship supporting Guyana, in the midst of a crisis on the Essequibo, an oil-rich territory claimed by Venezuela. “ HMS Trent will visit Guyana, our regional ally and Commonwealth partner this month, for a series of engagements in the region “, indicated the British Ministry of Defense in a press release, without further details.
THE HMS Trent has a crew of 65 people. It is armed with cannons and can deploy helicopters and unmanned aircraft. The patrol boat fights against piracy and smuggling, and according to the Royal Navy it also serves to protect the borders, reports our correspondent in London, Marie Boëda.
According to the BBC, the patrol boat must participate in military maneuvers after Christmas with other unspecified allies of the former British colony, for whom London had already shown its support by dispatching its Secretary of State for the Americas, David. Rutley. It left its home port in Gibraltar earlier this month and is now in Barbados, several hundred kilometers from Guyana’s capital, Georgetown, its final destination. HMS Trent had been sent to the Caribbean at the beginning of December to fight against drug trafficking.
The Minister of Defense of Venezuela, Vladimir Padrino López, reacted by denouncing a “ provocation “. “ A warship (…)? After that? And the commitment to goodwill and peaceful coexistence? And what about the promise not to resort to threats and not to use force in any circumstance? “, he wrote on the social network
¿A war buque in water to delimit? ¿Y entonces? Is there a compromise with good faith and peaceful convivencia? ¿Ye acuerdo de no amenazarse y utilizar la fuerza mutuamente en ninguna circunstancia?
¡Seguimos alertas anteas provocaciones que ponen en riesgo la… pic.twitter.com/7nqifgGULn
— Vladimir Padrino L. (@vladimirpadrino) December 24, 2023
Some 125,000 people, or a fifth of Guyana’s population, live in Essequibo, which covers two-thirds of the country’s land area. Venezuela claims the Essequibo region, which represents two thirds of Guyana, or 158,000 km². Its hills and jungles are rich in gold and diamonds, oil deposits have also been discovered.
Tension rose after Guyana launched oil tenders in September, then the referendum organized in response on December 3 in Venezuela on the annexation of the Essequibo, a territory of 160,000 km² rich in oil and natural resources. , administered by Georgetown and claimed by Venezuela.
Guyanese President Irfaan Ali and Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro met on December 14 during a summit who contributed to reduce the pressure – commitment not to use force – but did not resolve the dispute, with the two countries sticking to their positions.
(And with AFP)