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Territorial Dispute Context
Comparative view of administrative claims in the Essequibo region
Primary Sources
Venezuela leader to go to The Hague on first trip outside Caribbean
Caracas (AFP) – Venezuela's acting president Delcy Rodriguez said Saturday she is traveling to The Hague to represent her country before the International Court of Justice in a dispute over the oil-rich Essequibo region. Issued on: 09/05/2026 - 20:40 1 min Reading time Venezuela's interim President Delcy Rodriguez seen during a press conference after the signing of an agreement with Chevron Venezuela in Caracas in April © Juan BARRETO / AFP/File "It has fallen to me to travel in the coming hours to defend our homeland," Rodriguez said in a televised speech, referring to the territory claimed by both Venezuela and neighboring Guyana, which currently administers it.It would be her first trip outside the Caribbean since assuming power following the capture of strongman Nicolas Maduro by US forces in January.The UN court has in recent days been hearing from representatives of Venezuela and Guyana over the centuries-old dispute that has at times threatened to spill over into military action. The hearings, which began on May 4, will conclude on Monday.The two countries have been wrangling over the region since the 1800s, with the conflict intensifying after ExxonMobil discovered massive offshore oil deposits a decade ago, giving Guyana the largest crude oil reserves per capita in the world.The Essequibo region comprises more than two-thirds of Guyana.Neighboring Venezuela, however, claims the territory, which runs roughly along the western side of an eponymous river over an area of 160,000 square kilometres (62,000 square miles).ICJ judges have been asked to rule on the validity of the border established between the two countries in 1899 under British colonial rule.Venezuela argues that the border should be drawn in accordance with a later document from 1966 signed before Guyana gained its independence.It says that the Essequibo River, located much farther east than the current border, is the natural frontier, as it was in 1777 under Spanish colonial rule.Long under US sanctions, Rodriguez saw them lifted in April as part of a rapprochement with Washington, which saw Caracas grant US companies access to Venezuela's oil riches.People appearing before the ICJ, the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, benefit from special legal protections. © 2026 AFP Share :
Venezuela's Delcy Rodriguez heads to The Hague for land dispute case ...
Trip to be first time Rodriguez has left Caribbean since Maduro abduction, will attend ICJ case on Guyana land dispute.Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodriguez is heading to The Hague for a land dispute case with Guyana at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).The trip to the Netherlands announced on Saturday will be the first time she’s left home since the abduction of President Nicolas Maduro by US forces in January.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Petro becomes first president to visit Venezuela since Maduro abductionlist 2 of 3US to allow Venezuelan government to cover Maduro’s lawyer feeslist 3 of 3US Senate blocks bid to stop Trump using military against Cubaend of list“It has fallen to me to travel in the coming hours to defend our homeland,” Rodriguez said in a televised speech.The United Nations’ top civil court in The Hague has already been hearing arguments in the Venezuela-Guyana case, which relates to a centuries-old dispute over the oil-rich Essequibo region.Venezuela claims the territory, currently administered by Guyana. The sprawling region bordering eastern Venezuela accounts for two-thirds of Guyana’s current territory.The discovery by ExxonMobil of offshore oil deposits in Essequibo gave Guyana – with a population of less than a million – the largest per capita crude oil reserves in the world.The case focuses on whether the current border, established between the two countries in 1899 under British colonial rule should remain valid, or if the border should be drawn in accordance with a later document from 1966 signed before Guyana gained its independence.Rodriguez, who was Maduro’s vice president when he was captured and flown to the United States to stand trial, had long been under US sanctions. They were lifted when she became acting president. Regardless, officials attending ICJ proceedings are typically granted special legal protections.Rodriguez, a supporter of Maduro’s Chavismo movement, has remained compliant to a list of US demands, including stopping oil deliveries to Cuba, opening Venezuela’s state-owned oil industry to foreign companies and releasing political prisoners.At the same time, she has sought to strike a careful balance with Venezuela’s influential internal security apparatus and military.Despite saying she was invited to the US by the Trump administration, she has so far not made the trip. But has visited the nearby Caribbean islands of Grenada and Barbados.
Venezuela, Guyana resume hearings over disputed, oil-rich Essequibo - MSN
Venezuela and Guyana resumed a long-running dispute over the oil-rich Essequibo region with hearings at the International Court of Justice.
Guyana takes Venezuela to World Court as Caricom fractures
Venezuela stood before the International Court of Justice this week and flatly rejected the court's authority to settle its century-old territorial dispute with Guyana — even as its delegation ...
