GEORGETOWN, Guyana, (CMC) – Guyana has expressed “grave concern” over what it claims to have been “recent actions and statements” by Venezuela that constitute “clear violations” of the Argyle Agreement and the binding order of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), both of which came into effect in December 2023.

In a statement, Guyana’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs recalled that the Argyle Agreement, signed in St Vincent and the Grenadines on December 2023 in “the presence of regional and international interlocutors, unequivocally commits Guyana and Venezuela to refrain from escalating any conflict or disagreement arising from the territorial controversy between the two States”.

It said that this includes refraining from actions that could aggravate tensions or alter the current situation in the disputed territory, pending resolution in accordance with international law.

But Georgetown said that the announcement by President Nicolás Maduro on January 7, this year, regarding the election of a “Governor of the Guayana Esequiba” by “the people of Guayana Esequiba” constitutes a direct violation of these commitments.

“This unilateral action disregards the spirit of the Argyle Agreement, undermines the agreed framework for dialogue and peaceful coexistence, and significantly escalates tensions between our nations.

“The people of Guyana’s Essequibo region are Guyanese nationals who live in Guyana’s sovereign territory. It would be a flagrant violation of the most fundamental principles of international law, enshrined in the UN Charter, for Venezuela to attempt to conduct an election in Guyanese territory involving the participation of Guyanese national,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs added.

In 2023, Caracas claimed that more than half of eligible Venezuelan voters had taken part in a referendum that yielded overwhelming support for laying claim to the Essequibo.

National Electoral Council president Elvis Amoroso said more than 10.4 million out of 20.7 million eligible voters had cast their ballots.

The referendum came after the ICJ warned Caracas against “annexation” of the Essequibo, an oil-rich region that makes up about two-thirds of Guyana and is home to 125,000 of its 800,000 citizens.

Guyana said also that the ICJ, in its Order dated December 1, 2023, directed that Venezuela shall refrain from any actions that would modify the situation prevailing in the disputed territory, which is currently administered by Guyana.

“The Order also emphasized that both States must avoid actions that might aggravate or extend the dispute or make it more difficult to resolve.”

But Georgetown said President Maduro’s statement, coupled with any actions to integrate the Essequibo region into Venezuela’s administrative framework, including by calling for an election “by the people of Guayana Esequiba” of a governor of “Guayana Esequiba,” “represents a blatant disregard for this binding Order.

“Such actions not only jeopardize the judicial process but also undermine the authority of the ICJ as the principal judicial organ of the United Nations,” the ministry said, adding that “Guyana reserves the right to ask the Court for additional provisional measures in the event that Venezuela takes any steps toward conducting its so-called “election” in Guyanese territory or involving Guyanese nationals”

Guyana said it “categorically rejects Venezuela’s claims to the Essequibo region and reiterates its full commitment to the ICJ process, as mandated by the United Nations Secretary-General under the Geneva Agreement of 1966.

“Guyana urges Venezuela to immediately cease all actions that contravene the Argyle Agreement and the ICJ Order and to recommit to the principles of international law and peaceful dispute resolution to which it agreed at Argyle.

“Guyana remains prepared to engage in constructive dialogue under the agreed frameworks, but it cannot condone or accept unilateral actions that threaten its sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it is requesting “assurances from the Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela that it will respect its international obligations and refrain from further actions that undermine the peaceful resolution of this longstanding controversy. In conformity with international law.”

The two countries are before the ICJ concerning the Arbitral Award of 3 October 1899…which is pending before it.

The case, which was filed by Guyana in March 2018, seeks the Court’s decision on the validity of the Arbitral Award which finally determined the land boundary between the two countries. The Court has already ruled that it has jurisdiction over the controversy and will decide the issue on the merits