THE Guyana Defence Force has reported its troops were attacked within the last 24 hours in an area where it has a long running border dispute with Venezuela.
A statement issued by the GDF on May 15 said armed men in civilian clothing carried out three separate attacks on troops conducting patrols on the Cuyuní River in the disputed Essequibo region.
“On each occasion, the Guyana Defence Force executed a measured response, and no rank sustained any injuries.”
The GDF said it will “continue to respond to acts of aggression along the Guyana-Venezuela border.”
Both countries lay claim to Essequibo, which makes up two-thirds of Guyana’s territory and is home to around 125,000 of its more than 800,000 citizens.
Guyana has administered the region for decades, and insists Essequibo’s frontiers were determined by an arbitration panel in 1899.
Venezuela claims the Essequibo River to the region’s east forms a natural border that has been recognized as far back as 1777.
The GDF said on April 15, it “remains resolute in its mission to protect Guyana’s territorial integrity” and was taking “all necessary measures to safeguard the nation’s borders and maintain peace and security."
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