The ownership of the Essequibo region – rich in gold, diamonds, timber, gas and oil – began to be discussed this Monday, May 4, before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), between Venezuela and Guyana. The dispute that began at the end of the 19th century reaches the highest UN court, despite the fact that Caracas announced that it will not abide by any ruling. For Guyana, which has 70% of its territory at stake, the dispute "has existential importance."

First modification: 05/04/2026 - 21:11 Last modification: 05/04/2026 - 21:31

"Facing the ambitions of a larger and more powerful neighbor over our territory has not only threatened our peace and security, but has also slowed our development," Guyana's Foreign Minister, Hugh Hilton Todd, told judges in the Great Hall of Justice in The Hague on Monday, during the hearing over the ownership of the Essequibo region, disputed with its neighbor Venezuela since the 19th century.

The conflict revolves around a border territory of 160,000 square kilometers around the jungle Essequibo River, where important oil and gas discoveries have been made.

Guyana, with an area of ​​just over 210,000 square kilometers, expressed its concern because 70% of its territory is at stake in the dispute with Venezuela. "This case is of existential importance for Guyana," Minister Todd said.

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The hearings, which will last a week, will continue on Wednesday with the initial statements from Venezuela, which on Saturday confirmed its participation to "show the truth to the world," after making it clear that it would not abide by any ruling.

The Venezuelan Foreign Minister and leader of the team, Yván Gil, announced this Monday on social networks that the delegation will focus on "reaffirming the illegality" of the process in court.

Read alsoOil, fuel of the dispute between Venezuela and Guyana

Historic border dispute

The differences over the border limits around Essequibo, a territory rich in minerals and deposits, began at the end of the 19th century.

Venezuela considers the region as part of its territory since the Spanish colonial era, when it was within its borders. The situation changed in 1899 with an arbitration ruling by the United Kingdom, Russia and the United States, who drew the border along the Essequibo River, largely favoring Guyana, then a British colony.

The United States represented Venezuela, in part because Caracas had broken diplomatic relations with London.

But Venezuela declared the ruling null and void in 1962 and, four years later, signed the Geneva Agreement with the United Kingdom, through which Venezuela and Guyana committed to seeking a practical and satisfactory solution for both parties.

The Venezuelan government has currently invoked this pact as the "only possible solution." "This international treaty is the regulatory framework that must be complied with in good faith, in order to put an end to the territorial controversy," the chancellor, Yván Gil, said in a statement, before stating that his Government will "never" renounce Essequibo.

Tensions between the two South American countries worsened when ExxonMobil discovered deposits in 2015 that give Guyana, with 800,000 inhabitants, one of the largest oil reserves per capita in the world.

In 2018, Guyana requested a ruling from the judges of the ICJ, the highest court of the United Nations, whom it asked to ratify the 1899 border decision.

Read alsoVenezuela delivers documents to the ICJ on the dispute with Guyana over the Essequibo region

Venezuela ignores the ICJ

The two nations have appealed to the Court on multiple occasions, although Venezuela challenged the jurisdiction of the ICJ on the grounds that it could not judge the case without the presence of the United Kingdom, which was Guyana's colonial power at the time of the original border decision.

In 2020, the Court ruled that it had the power to hear the case, a ruling that has made this week's hearings possible.

But in a referendum held in 2023, Venezuelan voters rejected the ICJ's jurisdiction over the territorial dispute with Guyana and backed the creation of a new state in the Essequibo region, which Venezuela established a year later.

Amid the litigation, the court ordered Venezuela to refrain from holding elections in 2025 to elect officials who would supposedly oversee the region. Caracas carried out the elections in a couple of border parishes, without the participation of any Essequiban or installation of voting centers in Guyanese territory.

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In the preamble to the hearings, the interim president of Venezuela, Delcy Rodríguez, wore a pin in the shape of the Essequibo region during her recent state visits to the Caribbean islands of Grenada and Barbados.

The accessory became popular among Venezuelan government officials, state television presenters, legislators and Chavismo sympathizers.

The final ruling in the case will take several months to be known. ICJ rulings are binding and unappealable in theory, but the court has no way of directly enforcing them, instead relying on the UN Security Council, a body with great difficulty reaching a consensus due to the weight of the veto of its five permanent members.

Read alsoThe historical dispute between Venezuela and Guyana over the Essequibo

With EFE, Reuters and AP

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