The Guyana Defence Force (GDF) has increased its operational posture and will continue with its routine patrol along the Guyana- Venezuela border in the Cuyuni River, Chief of Defence Staff, Brigadier Omar Khan has said.

Guyanese soldiers have come under fire from the Venezuelan side of the border in recent months with the most recent incidents happening on Tuesday and Wednesday.

At a press conference on Thursday, the Chief of Defence Staff said the security posture in the bordering region will be strengthened to protect residents, troops and the country’s territory.

“We have had no reason to conduct frequent searches, the current situation now warrants us to do that and we will identify how and when we will do that,” the Chief of Defence staff told reporters.

Mr. Khan said Guyanese and Venezuelans in the border villages are living and co-existing well. He said there has been no immediate security threat, except from the recent occurrences. However, Brigadier said the most recent incidents occurred in an isolated area, where there are no residents. He said he was also a few Kilometers away when the first incident took place on Tuesday night.

“After the first incident on Tuesday, lot of work had been done, investigating, accessing etc, it is not a shooting incident that you would have on a normal street in your country, this is another territory so we wanted to asses and we had to come with accurate information,” the Chief of Defence noted.    

Moving forward, the Chief of Defence Staff said works are already in progress to ensure that ranks are more equipped to respond to any situation.

“We share a border with Venezuela, we expect Venezuela not to violate our sovereignty but we are prepare for any eventuality and that is why we continue to patrol the entire border,” Brigadier Khan said.

As it relates to the planned Venezuelan elections for a Governor for Guyana’s Essequibo, Brigadier Khan said any Guyanese or Venezuelan on Guyanese territory found participating in the elections will be harshly dealt with.

The Guyana Government on Thursday registered its protest with Venezuela over the latest attack on Guyanese soldiers by gunmen on the Venezuelan side of the border in the Cuyuni River. The Guyana Defence Force reported that none of the soldiers suffered any injuries.

The GDF soldiers were conducting routine patrols between Eterinbang and Makapa in the Cuyuni River when they came under fire.

In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it has communicated Guyana’s condemnation on the latest attack to Caracas and has urged the Venezuelan Government to investigate the incident and prosecute those responsible for the attack.

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