Will Venezuela Invade Guyana?
17th November 2023
Eight years ago in Guyana, an Idaho-sized country on the northern coast of South America, ExxonMobil discovered massive oil reserves. So massive, that it’s speculated that the tiny nation, which is one of the least densely populated countries on the planet, could become the richest country per capita.
Estimates indicate that Guyana has around 11 billion barrels of oil equivalent, boosting the nation to the third position in terms of proven oil reserves in the region. To contextualize the enormity of these discoveries, consider that the tiny nation has almost five times more proven oil reserves than Argentina, a country thirteen times larger by land mass. Only Brazil, the fifth largest country, and Venezuela, the country with the largest proven oil reserves, surpass Guyana.
The State Department now finds an alternative to deal with on oil to Venezuela; after all, the US remains Guyana’s largest trading partner. But with opportunity comes discontent; not just from environmentalists, but primarily from Guyana’s problematic neighbor, which has had a territorial dispute with the former British territory since 1897.