Nicolas Maduro, the president of Venezuela, warned Britain “don’t mess” with his country as he deployed thousands of troops in response to a Royal Navy ship sent to the region.
Mr Maduro called Britain a “decadent, rotten, ex-empire” as he ordered troops into defensive manoeuvres ahead of HMS Trent arriving to support neighbouring Guyana in a territorial row.
Britain said on Sunday that it would divert the patrol vessel to the former British colony, amid the South American country’s simmering dispute over the oil-rich Essequibo region.
A Guyana foreign ministry source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP that the ship was due to arrive on Friday and would be in its territory for “less than a week” for open sea defence exercises. The ship will not dock in Georgetown.
Mr Maduro said he was launching “a joint action of a defensive nature in response to the provocation and threat of the United Kingdom against peace and the sovereignty of our country”.
The television broadcast accompanying Mr Maduro’s announcement showed fighter jets taking part in the Venezuelan exercise, as well as ships and ocean patrol vessels.
The Venezuelan government earlier asked Guyana, in a statement, “to take immediate action for the withdrawal of the HMS Trent, and to refrain from involving military powers in the territorial controversy”.
Mr Maduro claims that Essequibo – which makes up about two-thirds of Guyana’s territory – is Venezuelan land. The decades-old dispute has flared since massive oil deposits were found in its waters.
Escalating tensions have raised fears of a potential conflict in the region over the remote area of 160,000 sqkm (62,000 sqm).
Mr Maduro and Irfaan Ali, the president of Guyana, agreed at a meeting earlier this month not to resort to force to settle the dispute.
“We believe in diplomacy, in dialogue, in peace,” Mr Maduro said.
“But no one should threaten Venezuela, no one should mess with Venezuela. We are men of peace, we are a people of peace, but we are warriors and this threat is unacceptable for any sovereign country,” he said.
“The threat of the decadent, rotten, ex-empire of the United Kingdom is unacceptable.”
A UK government spokesman condemned Venezuela’s actions
“Venezuela’s actions against Guyana are unjustified and should cease. The border between both countries was settled in 1899 through international arbitration and we continue to support the territorial integrity of Guyana – an important regional ally and Commonwealth partner.
“HMS Trent is currently deployed in the Caribbean and will visit Guyana from tomorrow (29 December) as part of a series of routine engagements in the region.
“We are working with partners in the region prevent escalation and continue to monitor the situation closely.”
David Rutley, a foreign minister in the UK Government, visited Guyana earlier this month and reiterated sovereign borders “must be respected” and that London would work internationally “to ensure the territorial integrity of Guyana is upheld”.
Mr Maduro’s government held a controversial referendum on Dec 3 in which 95 per cent of voters, according to officials in the hard-Left regime, supported declaring Venezuela the rightful owner of Essequibo.
He has since started legal manoeuvres to create a Venezuelan province in Essequibo and ordered the state oil company to issue licences for extracting crude in the region.
Guyana’s Mr Ali has branded the moves a “grave threat to international peace and security”.
