US offers Guyana unwavering support in dispute with Venezuela over oil-rich territory of Esequibo
The US has reaffirmed its support for Guyana’s sovereignty – as the South American country argues with Venezuela over jungle territory containing huge amounts of oil and gas.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke to the president of Guyana, Irfaan Ali late on Wednesday, the State Department said.
A few hours earlier, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said the US does not want to see any violence as a result of the territorial dispute.
The region in question is Esequibo – a 62,000 square-mile area around the Esequibo river.
Guyana and Venezuela both claim ownership of it – a dispute dating back to the late 19th century, when Guyana was still a British colony.
Venezuela renewed its claims to the land after 11 billion barrels of recoverable oil and gas were found off the coast of Guyana in recent years.
Tensions have risen further since a referendum in Venezuela on Sunday, in which a huge majority of voters are said to have supported their government’s claim to Esequibo.
President Nicolas Maduro won backing to create a new state and is pledging oil and mining exploration in the territory.
Brazil has begun to move troops and armoured vehicles to Boa Vista, the capital of Roraima state, which borders Venezuela and Guyana.
Guyanese president Irfaan Ali says he will approach the International Court of Justice
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The discovery of valuable raw materials has put Guyana on the world map of oil producers.
A consortium comprising Exxon Mobil, China’s CNOOC and the US’s Hess Corporation began oil production in 2019.
It is currently running at 400,000 barrels a day, sharply boosting Guyana’s economy.
The Venezuelan referendum, in which voters also rejected the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) jurisdiction over the dispute, will not lead to an actual invasion, analysts have predicted.
Rather, it is an attempt by Mr Maduro to show strength and gauge support for his government ahead of 2024 presidential
elections, they have said.
Nevertheless, President Ali said on Tuesday that Guyana will report Mr Maduro’s comments about proposed oil development to the United Nations and the ICJ.
He added that he has spoken to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres.
His country’s armed forces are on high alert, he said, claiming that Venezuela has declared itself an “outlaw nation”.
“Super high-IQ revolutionaries” who are willing to work 80+ hours a week are being urged to join Elon Musk’s new cost-cutting department in Donald Trump’s incoming US government.
The X and Tesla owner will co-lead the Department Of Government Efficiency (DOGE) with former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.
And in a post on X, the official DOGE account put out a call to arms for people to sign up and help “dismantle government bureaucracy”.
The post said: “We are very grateful to the thousands of Americans who have expressed interest in helping us at DOGE.
“We don’t need more part-time idea generators.
“We need super high-IQ small-government revolutionaries willing to work 80+ hours per week on unglamorous cost-cutting.
“If that’s you, DM this account with your CV. Elon & Vivek will review the top 1% of applicants.”
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Elon Musk speaking at an event held at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate. Pic: AP Photo/Alex Brandon
In a reply to an interested party, Mr Musk suggested the lucky applicants would be working for free.
“Indeed, this will be tedious work, make lost of enemies & compensation is zero,” the world’s richest man wrote.
“What a great deal!”
When announcing the new department, President-elect Donald Trump said Mr Musk and Mr Ramaswamy “will pave the way for my administration to dismantle government bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure federal agencies”.
Mr Musk has previously made clear his desire to see cuts to “government waste” and in a post on his X platform suggested he could axe as many as three-quarters of the more than 400 federal departments in the US, writing: “99 is enough.”
At least 10 people have been killed after a fire broke out at a retirement home in northern Spain in the early hours of this morning, officials have said.
A further two people were seriously injured in the blaze at the residence in the town of Villafranca de Ebro in Zaragoza, according to the Spanish news website Diario Sur.
Two people remain in a critical condition following the blaze. Pic: AP
They remain in a critical condition, while several others received treatment for smoke inhalation.
Firefighters were alerted to the blaze at the residence – the Jardines de Villafranca – at 5am (4am UK time) on Friday.
Several residents were treated for smoke inhalation. Pic: AP
Those who were killed in the fire died from smoke inhalation, Spanish newspaper Heraldo reported.
The residence is home to 82 elderly residents.
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The blaze started in one of the rooms, Fernando Beltran, the national government’s top official in the region, told reporters.
All of the victims were elderly residents, he added.
Relatives wait for news outside the care home. Pic: AP
Fire crews, paramedics and police officers remain on site, said a spokesperson for the regional government of Aragon who confirmed the fatalities.
It took firefighters several hours to extinguish the blaze, they said.
The cause of the fire is unknown and is being investigated.
At least 10 people have been killed after a fire broke out at a retirement home in northern Spain in the early hours of this morning, officials have said.
A further two people were seriously injured in the blaze at the residence in the town of Villafranca de Ebro in Zaragoza, according to the Spanish news website Diario Sur.
Two people remain in a critical condition following the blaze. Pic: AP
They remain in a critical condition, while several others received treatment for smoke inhalation.
Firefighters were alerted to the blaze at the residence – the Jardines de Villafranca – at 5am (4am UK time) on Friday.
Several residents were treated for smoke inhalation. Pic: AP
Those who were killed in the fire died from smoke inhalation, Spanish newspaper Heraldo reported.
The residence is home to 82 elderly residents.
Read more from Sky News:
Mass displacement in Gaza – people unsure where to go
Donald Trump picks vaccine sceptic as health secretary
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
The blaze started in one of the rooms, Fernando Beltran, the national government’s top official in the region, told reporters.
All of the victims were elderly residents, he added.
Relatives wait for news outside the care home. Pic: AP
Fire crews, paramedics and police officers remain on site, said a spokesperson for the regional government of Aragon who confirmed the fatalities.
It took firefighters several hours to extinguish the blaze, they said.
The cause of the fire is unknown and is being investigated.
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