Venezuela Border controversy: Caricom backs Guyana as Venezuela escalates tensions over Essequibo

The Council for Foreign and Community Relations (COFCOR) of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has reiterated its firm and unwavering support for Guyana’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, reaffirming that the ongoing border controversy with Venezuela must be resolved peacefully and in accordance with international law.
Meeting in Saint Kitts and Nevis for it s28th session from 8–9 May 2025, COFCOR welcomed the latest developments in the case before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), including Guyana’s submission of its final written brief on 9 December 2024 and the expected filing of Venezuela’s final written submission by 11 August 2025. The Court is then expected to schedule oral hearings before rendering its final judgment.
In a communique issued at the conclusion of the meeting, COFCOR emphasized the ICJ’s role as the “right method” for resolving the long-standing border controversy and urged Venezuela to fully comply with the Court’s latest rulings. This includes the ICJ’s Order of 1 May 2025, which responded to Guyana’s request for additional provisional measures following Venezuela’s announcement of plans to hold elections in Guyana’s Essequibo region.
“The Court reaffirmed its earlier provisional measures and directed that Venezuela shall refrain from conducting or preparing to conduct elections in the disputed territory, which is currently administered and controlled by Guyana,” the communique stated. “These measures must be immediately and effectively implemented.”
Under the chairmanship of Minister of Foreign Affairs of Saint Kitts and Nevis, Dr. Denzil Douglas the council reviewed a number of pressing regional and international matters. Guyana was represented by Ambassador Elisabeth Harper, Permanent Secretary. Representatives from CARICOM Member States, including The Bahamas, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, and Haiti, participated in the two-day meeting.
In addition to affirming support for Guyana, COFCOR addressed plans to advocate for reforms to the international financial architecture at the upcoming Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development. The Region aims to advance calls for concessional financing for middle-income countries, climate finance solutions, implementation of the Bridgetown Initiative, and the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index as tools for building long-term development resilience.
The council considered and endorsed several CARICOM candidatures to international and regional bodies including the United Nations (UN) and the Organization of American States (OAS), and reviewed third-country requests for CARICOM’s support.
The meeting’s opening ceremony featured remarks from CARICOM Secretary-General Dr. Carla Barnett; Dominica Minister of Foreign Affairs and outgoing COFCOR Chair, Dr. Vince Henderson, and Dr. Denzil Douglas, who assumed the role of Chair for this session.
The COFCOR’s firm backing of Guyana marks a continued show of regional solidarity at a critical juncture in the legal proceedings at the ICJ, underscoring CARICOM’s commitment to peaceful resolution of disputes and the defense of its members’ sovereignty under international law.
The support comes amidst increasing aggressive behaviour from Venezuela. Venezuela has been planning unlawful elections it its continued claims over Guyana’s Essequibo region, claims which Guyana has consistently rejected and challenged at the International Court of Justice. The ICJ has ordered that Venezuela must refrain from conducting or preparing to conduct elections in Guyana’s Essequibo region.
Back in January, the Nicolás Maduro regime had announced plans to hold elections in the Essequibo region, which is two-thirds of Guyana’s landmass, on May 25, 2025 – something which Guyana wrote the ICJ in March to have blocked.
The World Court, which is hearing the case to settle the decades-long border controversy, issued an order recently that Venezuela must refrain from conducting or preparing to conduct elections in Guyana’s Essequibo region.
It also reaffirmed the provisional measures issued by the Court on December 1, 2023, which states that “…Venezuela shall refrain from taking any action which would modify the situation that currently prevails in the territory in dispute, whereby the Co-operative Republic of Guyana administers and exercises control over that area; and (2) Both Parties shall refrain from any action which might aggravate or extend the dispute before the Court or make it more difficult to resolve.”
In the latest issue, on Wednesday armed men in civilian clothing on the Venezuelan shore along the Cuyuni River, between Eteringbang and Makapa, carried out three separate attacks on Guyana Defence Force troops who were conducting riverine patrols. On each occasion, the Guyana Defence Force executed a measured response, and no rank sustained any injuries.