By: Tiana Cole | HGP Nightly News |
Guyana’s Agent before the International Court of Justice, Carl Greenidge, has said that recent developments in Venezuela could temporarily alter regional dynamics, potentially reducing the immediacy of any hostile posture toward Guyana.
Speaking during a telephone interview, Greenidge explained that Venezuela’s current circumstances are likely to force its attention inward, limiting its capacity to focus on external territorial matters, including Guyana.
According to Greenidge, as long as Venezuela remains under significant external pressure and grapples with internal instability, Guyana is unlikely to be an immediate priority. He suggested that Venezuela’s leadership would be preoccupied with domestic challenges rather than regional confrontation.
However, Greenidge cautioned that Guyana must remain alert and prepared, particularly if conditions in Venezuela worsen. He warned that heightened instability could result in an influx of Venezuelan nationals seeking refuge, creating potential humanitarian and security challenges along Guyana’s borders.
Greenidge noted that the timing and nature of any future risk to Guyana would depend largely on how relations between Venezuela and the United States evolve, as well as the condition in which Venezuela ultimately emerges from its current crisis.
His comments come amid the long-standing Guyana–Venezuela border controversy, which centers on Venezuela’s claim to Guyana’s Essequibo region. Guyana maintains that the 1899 Arbitral Award lawfully settled the boundary, a position currently before the International Court of Justice. Venezuela, for its part, continues to reject the court’s jurisdiction.
The regional situation has been further complicated by the recent capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro by U.S. authorities on criminal charges. Maduro has since pleaded not guilty to narco-terrorism allegations, developments that have intensified international scrutiny and uncertainty surrounding Venezuela’s internal stability and external relations.
Greenidge emphasized that while current conditions may provide a temporary buffer, Guyana must continue to monitor developments closely and remain ready amid shifting geopolitical realities.
