UK Deploys Warship To Guyana In Show Of Support Against Venezuela

"While the recent panic over the risk of a Venezuela invasion of its neighbor Guyana may have come and gone, some (former) global superpowers are not taking any chances, and according to the FT, the UK will deploy a naval patrol ship off the coast of the tiny but rich Latin American nation in a show of support for the former British colony as it faces a territorial claim from its more powerful if insolvent communist neighbor." ZeroHedge

Venezuela’s president orders creation of new state and map including land from Guyana

"Venezuela’s president ordered the creation of a new state called “Guayana Esequiba”...Guyana has called the move a step towards annexation and an “existential threat.” President Nicolás Maduro showed a “new map” of Venezuela including the disputed territory and said all residents from the area would be granted Venezuelan nationality. He said the map would be distributed throughout all schools and public buildings in the country.
CNN

Guyana is preparing to defend borders as Venezuela tries to claim oil-rich disputed region

"Guyana's President Irfaan Ali said the country is taking every necessary step to protect itself

from Venezuela, which has ordered its state-owned companies to explore and exploit oil and minerals in Guyana's vast and resource-rich Essequibo region that it considers its own......Ali said his government is reaching out to allies and regional partners, some of which Guyana has defense agreements with, to protect the Essequibo region." MS

Venezuela approves referendum to take over neighboring oil-rich Essequibo region controlled by Guyana

"Venezuela approved a referendum to take over the neighboring oil-rich Essequibo region controlled by the sovereign nation of Guyana after a vote Sunday, according to election officials. The National Electoral Council claimed to have counted more than 10.5 million votes even though few voters could be seen at polling sites throughout the voting period for the five-question referendum. Venezuelan voters were asked whether they support establishing a state in the Essequibo territory, granting citizenship to current and future area residents and rejecting the jurisdiction of the United Nations’ top court in settling the disagreement between the South American countries. Essequibo is larger than Greece and rich in minerals. It also gives access to an area of the Atlantic where energy giant ExxonMobil discovered oil in commercial quantities in 2015, drawing the attention of Maduro's government." FOX

World Court rules in favour of Guyana on measures over Venezuela referendum

"The International Court of Justice (ICJ) today ruled that Venezuela must not take any decision that modifies Guyana’s control over the Essequibo region.

This is in relation to its planned referendum on Sunday where one of its questions is tantamount to the annexation of Guyana’s Essequibo county.
The court said that the decision has a binding effect on the parties and creates a legal obligation.
The session was held under the presidency of Judge Joan E. Donoghue, President of the Court who delivered the order today in the Hague, Netherlands." Stabroek

Brazil bolsters northern border amid Venezuela and Guyana clashes

"Brazil bolsters defense actions along its northern border in response to territorial disputes with its neighbors, Guyana and Venezuela, according to Reuters.

"The Ministry of Defense has been monitoring the situation. Defensive actions have been intensified in the northern border region of the country, promoting a greater military presence," the statement said. Brazil decided to relocate more military resources to the north due to escalating tensions between Venezuela and Guyana over the oil-rich region known as Esequiba, which constitutes over two-thirds of Guyana's total territory.
It became known that on December 3, Venezuelans will vote in a referendum regarding rights to Esequiba." MS

Major New Conflict May Be Brewing on America's Doorstep

"Venezuela might mount a military move into Guyana as Caracas faces accusations that it is attempting an aggressive land grab in its oil-rich neighbor, it has been reported.

Brazilian intelligence has warned that the Venezuelan army is going to invade Guyana in the coming days, Defense Blog.org reported, raising concerns about regional stability and territorial disputes in South America." MS

Why Are US Military Personnel Heading To Peru?

"The goal of the operation is to provide “support and assistance to the Special Operations of the Joint Command of the Armed Forces and National Police of Peru,” including in regions recently engulfed in violence. The plenary session of Peru’s Congress last Thursday (May 18) authorised the entry of US troops onto Peruvian soil with the purpose of carrying out “cooperation activities” with Peru’s armed forces and national police. Passed with 70 votes in favor, 33 against and four abstentions, resolution 4766 stipulates that the troops are welcome to stay any time between June 1 and December 31, 2023.

The protesters’ demands included:

. The protesters’ demands included:

• The release of Castillo
• New elections
• A national referendum on forming a Constitutional Assembly to replace Peru’s current constitution, which was imposed by former President Alberto Fujimori following his self-imposed coup of 199

Peru is currently under the control of an unelected government that is heavily supported by Washington but overwhelmingly rejected by the Peruvian people. The crackdown on protests in the south of the Peru by the country’s security forces — the same security forces that US military personnel will soon be joining — has led to dozens of deaths.

EU and US interest in Latin America is rising rapidly as the race for lithium, copper, cobalt and other elements essential for the so-called “clean” energy transition heats up. It is a race that China has been winning pretty handily up until now.

Peru is not only one of China’s biggest trade partners in Latin America; it is home to the only port in Latin America that is managed entirely by Chinese capital. And while Peru may not form part of the Lithium Triangle (Bolivia, Argentina and Chile), it does boast significant deposits of the white metal. By one estimate, it is home to the sixth largest deposits of hard-rock lithium in the world. It is also the world’s second largest producer of copper, zinc and silver, three metals that are also expected to play a major role in supporting renewable energy technologies. Ecuador, is undergoing a major political crisis that is likely to spell the end of the US-aligned Guillermo Lasso government and a handover of power to Rafael Correa’s party and its allies.

And the US government and military have made no secret of their interest in the mineral deposits that countries like Peru hold in their subsoil. In an address to the Washington-based Atlantic Council on Jan 19, Gen. Laura Richardson, head of the U.S. Southern Command, spoke gushingly of Latin America’s rich deposits of “rare earth elements,” “the lithium triangle — Argentina, Bolivia, Chile,” the “largest oil reserves [and] light, sweet crude discovered off Guyana,” Venezuela’s “oil, copper, gold” and the fact that Latin America is home to “31% of the world’s fresh water in this region.” ZH