Really big escalation of tensions here between Venezuela and Guyana here. Maduro’s government is basically pushing through a “referendum” on what Venezuela should do with its claims on 2/3rd’s of Guyana’s territory, stemming from a border dispute between old Spanish and British borders. If it passed, it would affirm Venezuela’s claim on the majority of Guyana and threaten an invasion. Very horrible if it does pass and Venezuela decides to invade a sovereign country in an act of desperation to get its domestic politics boosted at the cost of Guyana’s oil related financial success

For some context, there was recently a consultative referendum in Venezuela on the question of whether or not to annex a disputed region of Guyana that encompasses about 2/3s of the country. About 95% of the voting Venezuelans voted in favor of annexation, but the veracity of these results is currently unclear.

All of this raises many questions. Will Venezuela actually invade Guyana or is this just a statement? Would the United States + its allies and/or neighboring South American countries intervene on behalf of Guyana if Venezuela invades? Will Venezuela get any meaningful support from any countries like Russia, China, Iran, etc? In short, what does this actually mean for Venezuela and Guyana?