–President Ali affirms; says Guyana hopes good sense will prevail, Bolivarian Republic will not act recklessly, disrupt zone of peace
MAINTAINING that Essequibo will remain under Guyana’s authority and Venezuela can do nothing to change this, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, President Irfaan Ali continued to reject the Spanish-speaking country’s attempts to impede on the nation’s territorial sovereignty.

President Ali gave this reassurance during an interview on France 24, where he not only addressed the Venezuelan referendum on the Essequibo, but also its actions.
“In relation to these two questions… Essequibo remains under the authority of Guyana and Venezuela can do nothing to change this. Venezuela cannot annex Essequibo…” the Head of State firmly said.
Dr. Ali then went on to say that Guyana is a peaceful country and will continue to abide by international law, but the country remains on guard.

“If Venezuela acts outside of the rule of law, then I think the international community must take this very seriously,” he said, while underscoring the support Guyana has received from both regional and international bodies such as the Organisation of the American States (OAS), the Commonwealth, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), among others.
“We are hoping that good sense will prevail and Venezuela will not act in a way that will disrupt peace in this zone,” the President told the interviewer.

He also said that many countries are standing in unison with Guyana and calling on Venezuela to pursue a peaceful solution.
However, Dr. Ali said: “…we are very concerned that President Maduro and the Government of Venezuela can use their own internal scenario and internal politics to create an instability within our region, to create fear and terror within the hearts and minds of their neighbours.”

Despite the Venezuelan administration’s open defiance towards international law, President Ali said that the accommodation of Venezuelan migrants will not stop.
Despite regional and international pleas for the Venezuelan administration to abide by international law, the Spanish-speaking country defied these calls and went full speed ahead with its full referendum.

The International Court Justice (ICJ), last Friday, granted Guyana provisional measures to prevent any action by Venezuela that could lead to the annexation of Guyana’s territory.
The decision was handed down by the President of the ICJ, Justice Joan E. Donoghue, at the Peace Palace in The Hague, in The Netherlands.

The court ordered that pending the decision of the substantive case, Venezuela shall refrain from taking any action that would modify the situation that currently prevails with the territory, which Guyana administers and exercises control over the Essequibo.
As an additional measure, the court also ordered that “both parties refrain from any action which might aggravate or extend the dispute before the court or make it more difficult to resolve.”