PANAMA CITY, PANAMA (Piero Stewart, Energy Analytics Institute, 6.Mar.2025) â Guyana has requested the International Court of Justice (ICJ) indicate provisional measures in the case concerning the Arbitral Award of 3 Oct. 1899, also known as Guyana v. Venezuela.
On 6 Mar. 2025, Guyana filed a request in the ICJ registry for indication of provisional measures in the case concerning the arbitral award, prompted by Venezuela’s announced plans to hold elections in Guyana’s Essequibo region, Guyana’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation announced 6 Mar. 2025 in an official statement.Â
The Essequibo region is a disputed area on Venezuela’s eastern border with Guyana. This region is an integral part of Guyana’s national territory. The region spans roughly 60,000 square miles and is comprised mainly of dense jungle and is rich in oil and mineral reserves.
For its part, Venezuela has purported to annex in violation of the court’s order on 1 Dec. 2023 and fundamental norms of international law, the ministry said.
“Guyana informed the court that the planned Venezuelan elections are scheduled to take place on 25 May 2025 and would inevitably be preceded by preparatory acts, including acts within Guyana’s Essequibo region, affecting the Guyanese population and Guyana’s sovereignty over its territory,” the ministry said. “Therefore, in order to preserve its rights, Guyana is requesting that the court order Venezuela to refrain from any acts within or affecting its sovereign territory, including the Essequibo region.”
This marks the second time Guyana has sought provisional measures from the court.
Guyana’s initial request resulted in the court’s order in late-2023. That request ordered:
“Unanimously, pending a final decision in the case, the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela shall refrain from taking any action which would modify the situation that currently prevails in the territory in dispute, whereby the Co-operative Republic of Guyana administers and exercises control over that area.”
The government of Guyana’s president Irfaan Ali considers that Venezuela’s plan to hold elections in “the territory in dispute” flagrantly violates this order.
Guyana’s current request seeks confirmation of this by the court, as well as an explicit directive to refrain from any electoral activities within or affecting this territory or it population, which consist of Guyanese nationals, the ministry said.
Guyana further requested the court convene hearings on its request as soon as possible, to enable such provisional measures as might be indicated by the court to be issued before serious and irremediable prejudice to Guyana’s rights occurs.
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By Piero Stewart reporting from Panama City. © 2025 Energy Analytics Institute (EAI). All Rights Reserved.
