Britain warned not to mess with Venezuela as President Maduro criticizes “decadent, rotten ex-empire Britain” for sending flotilla of warships to protect Guyana

Britain has been warned not to mess with Venezuela as President Nicolas Maduro condemned Britain’s “decadent, rotten ex-empire” for sending a navy warship to protect Guyana.

President Maduro on Thursday ordered more than 5,600 troops to take part in a “defense exercise” near the border with Guyana in response to Britain’s deployment of a warship to the region.

Maduro said he would “launch a joint defense operation in response to Britain’s provocation and threat to the peace and sovereignty of our country.”

Britain said on Sunday it would divert the patrol ship HMS Trent to Guyana, a former British colony, as the South American country simmers in a territorial dispute with neighbor Venezuela over the oil-rich Essequibo region.

At a meeting between Maduro and Ali earlier this month, the South American neighbors agreed not to use violence to resolve the dispute.

“We believe in diplomacy, in dialogue, in peace,” Maduro said.

“But no one should threaten Venezuela, no one should manipulate Venezuela. “We are a people of peace, but we are fighters and this threat is unacceptable to any sovereign country,” he said.

HMS Trent – a ship the government says is used for “defence diplomacy” – will take part in joint exercises with Guyana later this month

“The threat posed by Britain’s decadent, rotten former empire is unacceptable.”

A source in Guyana’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on condition of anonymity that the ship will arrive from Britain on Friday and will be in its territory for “less than a week” for high seas defense exercises. The ship will not dock in Georgetown.

The television broadcast that accompanied Maduro’s announcement showed warplanes taking part in the Venezuelan exercise, as well as ships and maritime patrol vessels.

Earlier in a statement, the Venezuelan government called on Guyana to “take immediate steps to withdraw HMS Trent and refrain from involving military forces in the territorial dispute.”

Guyana’s president, Irfaan Ali, sought to defuse tensions by saying on Thursday that “neither Venezuela nor any other state has anything to fear from activities within the territory or waters of Guyana.”

“We have no ambition or intention to desire anything that is not ours.” “We are fully committed to peaceful relations with our neighbors and all countries in our region,” he said in a statement on Facebook, sending “best wishes to the people”. of Venezuela, our neighbors.”

Guyana’s Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo said earlier that HMS Trent’s visit was part of “long-planned” and “routine” measures to build up the country’s defences.

Guyana and Venezuela agreed earlier this month to avoid any use of force and not to escalate tensions in the long-running dispute. Pictured Guyana (file photo)

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro speaks during the notification ceremony for the referendum on the future of a disputed territory with Guyana on December 4, 2023 in Caracas, Venezuela

Earlier this month, Venezuela released a new map showing Esequiba under Venezuelan control

Maduro claims that Essequibo – which makes up about two-thirds of Guyana’s territory – is actually Venezuelan land, a decades-old claim that has resurfaced since the discovery of large oil deposits in Guyana’s waters.

The rising tensions have raised fears in the region of a possible conflict over the remote 160,000 square kilometer area.

A British foreign minister, David Rutley, visited Guyana earlier this month and reiterated that sovereign borders “must be respected” and that London will work internationally “to ensure that Guyana’s territorial integrity is maintained.”

Maduro’s government held a controversial referendum on Dec. 3 in which 95 percent of voters backed declaring Venezuela the rightful owner of Essequibo, according to hard-left government officials.

He has since taken legal action to create a Venezuelan province in Essequibo and ordered the state oil company to issue permits for crude oil production in the area.

Guyana’s Ali called the measures a “serious threat to international peace and security.”