GEORGETOWN – U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio vowed Thursday that the United States will respond forcefully if Venezuela attacks Guyana amid an ongoing territorial dispute that involves massive oil and gas reserves. Rubio said it would be a “very bad day” for Venezuela should that happen.
On the second leg of a three-nation tour of the Caribbean, Rubio was in Guyana as the Trump administration ramps up engagement in the Western Hemisphere to promote energy independence and curb illegal migration, drug trafficking and gang violence.
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He made a brief stop in Georgetown on Thursday for talks with Guyanese President Irfaan Ali and other officials before traveling to Suriname for an even shorter visit in Paramaribo.
“The regional threats are based on illegitimate territorial claims by a narco-trafficking regime," Rubio told reporters at a joint news conference with Ali. “And I want to be frank, there will be consequences for adventurism. There will be consequences for aggressive actions.”
Guyana, which has significant offshore oil deposits, will play a key role in the Republican administration’s attempts to wean the region off of imports of Venezuelan energy. President Donald Trump has imposed major sanctions against those Venezuelan imports, although the U.S. is among the countries importing Venezuela's oil.
Guyana has a troubled relationship with Venezuela. Earlier this month, it denounced an incursion by an armed Venezuelan naval vessel in disputed waters where ExxonMobil is developing a mammoth oil deposit.
Rubio warned against any further incursions, saying, “it would be a very bad day for the Venezuelan regime if they were to attack Guyana or attack ExxonMobil or anything like it."
“It would not end well for them,” he added.
In Caracas, Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez responded by saying his country would never cede its claim to the disputed territory and accusing Ali and Rubio of “undermining the peace and stability of our region.”
Ali said his government welcomed Rubio's “reassurance of the U.S. in ensuring the safeguard of our territorial integrity and sovereignty” in the face of Guyana's territorial dispute with its much larger neighbor.
Ali said that on March 1 the Venezuelan ship passed close to several huge vessels used to store oil being produced by three oilfields operated by Exxon and partners Hess Corp. and CNOOC of China in the Stabroek Block, which contains an estimated 11 billion barrels of oil.
Since then, the Trump administration has announced severe sanctions, including 25% tariffs on goods produced in countries that import Venezuelan oil.
Rubio signed a security agreement with Guyana’s foreign minister, according to the State Department, that will enhance intelligence sharing and military-to-military cooperation. The signing came as the U.S. Navy was conducting exercises with the Guyanese Navy in its exclusive economic zone.
Since ExxonMobil made its major oil discovery in Guyana in 2015, Venezuela has revived a century-old territorial dispute with Guyana and taken steps to annex the remote Essequibo region, which comprises about two-thirds of Guyana’s land mass.
Nicolas Maduro’s government has called Guyana’s development of the oil fields “illegal.”
Guyana’s government on Thursday announced the start of the joint naval exercises. Guyana said the exercises, which began this week, involve the U.S. Navy cruiser USS Normandy and local vessels and are aimed at “safeguarding Guyana’s maritime sovereignty and enhancing regional security through collaborative training.
"This engagement also reflects the strong and growing military-to-military relationship between Guyana and the United States," Guyana's military said.
In the quick stop later to meet with President Chan Santokhi of Suriname, a small but resource-rich country neighboring Guyana, Rubio spoke of making U.S. businesses more aware of the potential for investment there.
More U.S. business ties would serve U.S. partners far better than the loan-heavy foreign development programs that China's government has used to help spread its influence globally, Rubio said.
He cited the rough airport road in Guyana, which he said was built with China's help. “They don’t do a bad job, they do a terrible job," the U.S. diplomat said of China's projects abroad. “We almost all got concussions.”
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Bert Wilkinson contributed from Georgetown, Guyana ,and Jorge Rueda from Caracas, Venezuela