GEORGETOWN, Guyana (AP) 鈥� complained to Caribbean leaders on Tuesday after Venezuela鈥檚 acting President Delcy Rodr铆guez wore a controversial pin during official visits depicting the map of Guyana鈥檚 western region that has long claimed as its own.
The pin, which Rodr铆guez wore on her attire, is in the shape of Guyana鈥檚 resources-rich region that makes up two-thirds of its territory that’s at with Venezuela, which neighbors Guyana to west.
The pin has been increasingly worn by Venezuelan government officials, state television anchors, lawmakers and members of the ruling party following the U.S. capture of in a stunning in Caracas, Venezuela’s capital, in early January.
In a note to Terrance Drew, the prime minister of St. Kitts and Nevis and chairman of a Caribbean trade bloc known as Caricom, said the pin asserts 鈥淰enezuela鈥檚 claim to Guyana鈥檚 territory.鈥�
Rodr铆guez wore the pin when she on Monday, and previously, during a visit to Grenada earlier in April, her first overseas trip since she took over after
In his note, Ali said he fears Rodr铆guez鈥檚 use of the pin on official trips could be misinterpreted as her hosts’ 鈥渁cquiescence or tolerance” of Venezuela’s territorial claims.
鈥淐aricom鈥檚 principled support for Guyana must be reflected not only in declarations but in the context and conduct of official engagements,鈥� he added, referring to the bloc.
Venezuela has long argued that an 1899 international boundaries commission cheated it out of the area during British colonial rule. The land dispute is currently before the International Court of Justice in the Netherlands.
For her part, Rodr铆guez questioned the focus on her choice of official attire and said Tuesday the pin reflects 鈥渢he only map of Venezuela that I鈥檝e known in my life.鈥� She reiterated Venezuela鈥檚 claim to Essequibo and expressed confidence that the international court would soon 鈥渞atify our historic stance.鈥�
In his note, Ali also reminded the trade bloc that it has unequivocally supported Guyana鈥檚 claim to the region at key meetings and insisted Venezuela should not be allowed to display 鈥渟ymbols and maps鈥� of Essequibo as it would only undermine the case before the international court.
Caricom issued a statement later Tuesday acknowledging Ali鈥檚 letter and saying that 鈥減latforms and engagements should not be used, whether directly or indirectly, to advance or appear to legitimize claims that are the subject of ongoing judicial proceedings.”
The bloc expressed 鈥渓ongstanding and unequivocal support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Guyana, and for the peaceful resolution of the controversy.”
Ali, Guyana’s president, also railed against the inclusion of Essequibo on official maps of Venezuela, calling it a 鈥漜alculated and provocative assertion of a claim鈥� that Guyana has persistently rejected.
In recent years, Venezuela has sent gunboats to U.S.-run , demanding that oil production there be halted, threats that the rigs have ignored.
In Caracas, government officials could not be immediately reached for comment.
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