The imperialists want a conflict between Guyana and Venezuela

Feb 12, 2024 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom

Kaieteur News – The imperialists are egging on a conflict between Guyana and Venezuela. Following the signing of the Argyle Declaration, the imperialists became worried about the prospects of peace.

The imperialists – the United States and the United Kingdom – began to take action to provoke tensions and to militarize these tensions.  A British warship was sent to Guyana, a provocative action which was a flagrant violation of the spirit of the Argyle Declaration.

American defense personnel have been pouring in to Guyana, no doubt to lure the country into making defense purchases, including aircraft and vessels. The US Southern Command also took part in flight exercises over Guyana’s territory in December.

The United States is wooing Guyana to acquire expensive military purchases at a time when our teachers are screaming out for better wages. ABC, an American news network, has reported that the US plans to sell military hardware, mainly planes and helicopters to Guyana.

In the meantime, US defense personnel have been engaged with the Government of Guyana. Earlier this month, a US Air Force Southern Commander visited Guyana to help improve our air defense capability.

The Guyana Defense Force and the US Southern Command are working together to fight cybercrime. But the Southern Command may be doing a little more than simply helping to boost our capabilities in this area.

In the area of disaster relief, the US Southern Command donated a field hospital ostensibly for disaster victims. Earlier last year the US was involved in soft diplomacy through its medical brigades and donations of medical supplies.

Last July, a US General from its Southern Command visited the country to speak about defense partnership. In the same month a massive US-led Exercise Tradewinds was hosted in Guyana.

This relationship that is being established must be seen in the context of the American’s continued aggression against Venezuela. America wants a war between Guyana and Venezuela so that it can use this as a pretext to further weaken the Maduro administration.

The role of ExxonMobil in this plot must not be ruled out. ExxonMobil was one of the foreign companies that resisted the attempts by Hugo Chavez to nationalize his oil industry so to ensure that greater benefits accrue to its people.

The Venezuelan Defense Minister has described the US Southern Command as Exxon’s ‘private security’. The oil conglomerate has always enjoyed a cozy relationship with the US government, with one of its Chief Executive Officers actually chosen to become US Secretary of State in the Donald Trump administration.

Under the Argyle Agreement, Guyana and Venezuela are supposed to be engaged in talks towards the goal of neighbourly cooperation. But there are forces within and outside of the ruling PPP/C government that are hell-bent on raising concerns about Venezuela’s trustworthiness.

Vice President Jagdeo appears now to be leading this charge. He has said that he was not surprised at the decision of the Americans to re-impose certain sanctions. This assessment he said was based on his observation of what is taking place in Venezuela. In the context of the ongoing talks, in Brazil between the Joint Commission established under the Argyle Agreement, this statement was unfortunate and ill-advised. It throws a spoke into the wheel of the work of the Joint Commission.

The Venezuelans may counter that such a comment from Jagdeo is not surprising. His government is seeking a major loan from the Exim Bank of the United States and it may be cuddling up to American imperialism in order to obtain the loan.

Feelers are being put out also about establishing a US military base in Guyana. And of all the persons who have come out in support of such an alliance is none other than Ravi Dev whom one expected to know better than to support such an action which would only heighten tensions, not only between Guyana and Venezuela but also with Brazil.

It is obvious that there are forces within and aligned to the PPP/C government in Guyana which want the Argyle Agreement to be nullified or put on hold. This is not necessarily in Guyana’s interest.

Reports are now appearing of a Venezuelan military troop build-up near to Guyana’s borders.  This comes soon after ExxonMobil announced exploration further west and closer to Venezuela. The timing of Exxon’s announcement is suspicious and can only lead to a rise in tensions between Guyana and Venezuela

The Venezuelans have confirmed this build-up but says it has a right to boost its defense. It also made reference to ‘illegal’ oil concessions granted by Guyana.

Venezuela is playing its usual geopolitical game. It knows that the US will re-impose oil sanctions come April and so its military build-up is a signal to the US and its sidekick ExxonMobil.  But given the close relationship between Guyana and the US, that signal is also directed at Georgetown.

• Cooperation, ExxonMobil, Government of Guyana, neighbourly, US-led Exercise Tradewinds