Despite participating in the current process before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and in response to the ICJ’s ruling on Thursday which ordered Venezuela to refrain from its planned elections for a Governor of Essequibo later this month, the Venezuelan Government today rejected the ruling.

In a statement, Venezuela called the provisional measures issued by the ICJ abusive and interventionist and made clear it will not abide by it.

“Venezuela reaffirms that, true to its historical position, it does not and will never recognize the International Court of Justice, nor will it abide by any decision emanating from it to resolve the territorial dispute surrounding ‘Guayana Essquiba’ in a process that has been rigged from the beginning and manipulated by anti- Venezuelan corporate interests that have nothing to do with Justice,” the Venezuelan government said.

Venezuela, which is fully participating in the ICJ process and has been arguing its case there, and which was bound by the provisional measures, said that nothing in international law allows the ICJ to interfere in matters that are in the exclusive domain of Venezuela domestic law, nor seek to prohibit a sovereign act, organized within its legal and political framework.

“The Bolavarian Republic of Venezuela demands once again, that the Government of Guyana stop the delaying direct negotiations and strictly comply with the Geneva Agreement as the only valid path to a definitive, peaceful and mutually satisfactory solution for the territory of Essequibo Guyanana,” the Venezuelan government writes.

Venezuela said it will not bow to international pressure, judicial blackmail or foreign court to turn away from its beliefs and conviction and wants Guyana at the negotiation table to settle the matter.

In response to the statement from Caracas, the Government of Guyana on Friday said it expects that the Government of Venezuela will act responsibly in complying with the Courts’ Orders of both 1st December 2023 and 1st May 2025 which are legally binding on both States, and in so complying, fully respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Guyana.

The Government has again rejected Venezuela’s push for bilateral talks, pointing to the ongoing case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

The Government of Guyana said it wishes to remind the Government of Venezuela that it has no intention of entering into bilateral negotiations with Venezuela regarding Venezuela’s claim of nullity of the 1899 Arbitral Award and by extension, its claim to almost two thirds of Guyana’s territory.

It added that the matter is pending before the International Court of Justice by decision of the United Nations Secretary General, in accordance with the 1966 Geneva Agreement on the settlement of the controversy, an Agreement to which both Guyana and Venezuela are parties.

“The Court’s Judgment will be definitive, final and binding on Guyana and Venezuela”, the Government of Guyana reminded.

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