UK to Send Naval Ship To Guyana Amid Venezuela Border Dispute

• Britain will deploy a naval ship off Guyana later this month, its Ministry of Defence said, as the South American nation faces a border dispute with neighbour Venezuela over the oil-rich Essequibo region.
• "HMS Trent will visit regional ally and Commonwealth partner Guyana later this month as part of a series of engagements in the region during her Atlantic Patrol Task deployment," a spokesperson said.
• The deployment follows a visit by a British junior foreign minister to Guyana earlier this month, intended to offer the UK's support for the country, an ally and former British colony.
• Guyana and Venezuela agreed earlier this month to avoid any use of force and not to escalate. Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino said in a social media post on Sunday that his country would remain "on alert following provocations that put at risk the peace and stability of the Caribbean and our America."
• The 160,000-square-km (62,000-square-mile) Essequibo region is generally recognised as part of Guyana, but in recent years Venezuela has revived its claim to the territory and its offshore areas after major oil and gas discoveries.

 (Source: Reuters)