Post #1413

Venezuelans voted to support the country’s sovereignty claim over the Essequibo Strip in a non-binding referendum on Sunday. National Electoral Council (CNE) President Elvis Amoroso reported that all five referendum questions, related to different aspects of Venezuela’s argument over the controversial border with Guyana, had between 95-98 percent of “Yes” votes. Venezuela has disputed the 160,000 square kilometer territory since the 19th century, originally with the United Kingdom and later with independent Guyana. On Sunday, voters were asked whether they rejected the 1899 arbitration ruling that awarded the territory to the UK and instead supported the 1966 Geneva Agreement that saw all parties commit to an amicable solution, if they opposed the International Court of Justice (ICJ) jurisdiction on the matter as well as Guyanese efforts to extract resources in the Essequibo’s waters. https://venezuelanalysis.com/news/venezuela-referendum-delivers-overwhelming-backing-for-essequibo-claim/