In what is likely to further inflame tensions in the hemisphere, Venezuelan ruler Nicolás Maduro announced Tuesday the creation of a new military zone that would be in charge of defending an oil -and mineral-rich territory of neighboring Guyana that he’s claiming belongs to his nation.
Maduro also designated a general, Alexis Rodríguez Cabello, as the sole authority of the Essequibo, a chunk of land in Guyana slightly smaller than the state of Florida. He also ordered that the more than 125,000 Guyanese living in the area, which is mostly jungle, be granted Venezuelan citizenship.
The announcement comes after Maduro claimed that 98% of Venezuelans overwhelmingly approved on Sunday his annexation of a new state that accounts for three quarters of Guyana’s current land mass. While Guyana objected to the vote and called it illegal, international observers have questioned the election results. The government’s report of voter participation did not square with the empty voting stations seen during the day and was more than twice as high as that of independent exit polls.
Maduro announced the creation of the Guyana Integral Defense Zone, or ZODI, to be called Zodi Guayana Esequiba, with headquarters in Tumeremo, a town in Venezuela near the Essequibo region. The Essequibo is at the center of a centuries-old border dispute between the two countries that is currently before the United Nations International Court of Justice.
It is unclear how large the new military force to be based in Tumeremo would be, but Maduro indicated it’s the first of several steps he plans to take to execute the mandate he says he was given on Sunday to invade Guyana.
On Tuesday, Brazil’s military reinforced its northern border due to rising tensions between Venezuela and Guyana. Brazil has borders with both countries.
U.S. officials, who have been keeping a close eye on the simmering tensions over Caracas’ claim to the Essequibo region, have grown increasingly concerned that Maduro could be preparing for the use of military force on Guyanase territory.
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