Venezuela and Guyana To Meet Amid Territorial Dispute

• Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro will meet with Guyana President Mohamed Irfaan Ali on Thursday, December 14, 2023, amid a territorial dispute between the two countries, according to a letter from the prime minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
• The announcement of the bilateral meeting came after Maduro spoke with Ralph Gonsalves, the prime minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, who also serves as president pro tempore of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), and U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Saturday.
• Tensions have been mounting between Venezuela and Guyana in recent weeks due to a long-running border dispute over Esequibo, an area in Guyana where massive discoveries of offshore oil and gas have been made.
• Venezuela's government said the meeting "is in order to preserve our aspiration to maintain Latin America and the Caribbean as a zone of peace."
• The Office of the President of Guyana confirmed Ali had agreed to the meeting but added, "Guyana's land boundary is not up for discussion."

(Source: Reuters)