Venezuela has announced a ‘defensive’ military exercise involving 5,600 military personnel in response to Britain sending a warship to waters off Guyana, multiple international media outlets have reported.
The reports quoted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro referring to “the provocation and threat of the United Kingdom against peace and the sovereignty of our country.”
According to the BBC, Maduro described the British warship issue as “practically a military threat from London,” breaking the “spirit” of a recent agreement between Venezuela and Guyana not to use force to settle their dispute.
On Sunday, the UK confirmed HMS Trent would participate in joint exercises with Guyana after Christmas.
France 24 reported that a Venezuelan government statement urged immediate action to withdraw the vessel.
Amid the latest controversy, Guyana’s President, Dr. Irfaan Ali, declared on Facebook that neither Venezuela nor any other State has anything to fear from activities within Guyana’s sovereign territory or waters.
“I have iterated before that we harbor no ambitions or intentions to covet what does not belong to us. We are fully committed to peaceful relations with our neighbors and all countries in our Region,” Ali stated.
He noted that Guyana has long partnered with regional and international states to enhance internal security.
Ali also declared that the partnerships threaten no one and do not intend to be aggressive or constitute an offensive act against any state.
Headline photo: (L to R) Presidents Ali and Maduro
Irresponsible on the part of Guyana to permit UK warship in its waters at this time. It is provocative and Venezuela’s reaction is understandable. The two sides having recently signed a declaration not to engage in provocations.
Lol Ali, regardless of all intention and purpose with the current hostile situation you think this is the best time to allow something of this nature to happen? Like you think Mudaro is a dunce? Rewind and come again? Why when Burnham was taking the position to harvest oil, he had to relax the idea because of treats the Bolivar did? Guyana had no Army at the time, so he was trying to secure his borders and build his army, the PPP came into power and still didn’t do shit about building it’s force. When a hungry lion is suffering you think he have time to neg. Who will feed his hungry belly? You are just provoking the man more in basic terms that’s all. And you are well aware of what provoking one can cause.
Tick Tock Tick Tock
@King and @Anonymous you both cause me to LMAO. Seriously.
Answer me…
1. Has Guyana ever been an aggressor towards Venezuela?
2. Since when strengthening your capabilities is a threat to a another if the other does not have intentions of creating a problem with you?
3. When the RSS holds defense training with the US military, who are they threatening?
5. Are we 100% certain that Venezuela, given its stated ambitions, will adhere to the treaty signed in St. Vincent? If they fail to, would it be the first time that a State is failing to adhere to a treaty?
6. Doesn’t Guyana have a right to prepare itself for eventualities? And in that preparation doesn’t it have the right to partner with whom it wants to?
7. Didn’t the same Maduro, in 2018 partnered with Russia to have in Venezuela Tupolev Tu-160 strategic bombers, an Antonov An-124 heavy military transport aircraft and an Ilyushin Il-62 long-haul planes along with Russian military personnel to deal with what he perceived to be a threat from the opposition?
Now, imagine Guyana has an exercise with one British warplane and Maduro is crying.
Guyana has a right to prepare because to fail to prepare is to prepare to fail. In that effort it has the right to partner with any whom it wants. If Venezuela has no negative intentions, it should not be afraid that Guyana is exercising its right to strengthen its defenses.
Guess Maduro can invite Russia for some military exercises as well.
Demorcracy at its best.