What's happened
Venezuela's referendum on the disputed Essequibo territory raises tensions with Guyana.
Why it matters
The referendum raises geopolitical tensions and has potential implications for the control of a significant oil-rich territory.
What the papers say
The Independent emphasizes concerns about Venezuela's referendum as a potential trigger for conflict, while The Telegraph highlights the referendum as a distraction from Venezuela's domestic issues. The New York Times focuses on Maduro's political motivations, and The Guardian and AP News provide background on the territorial dispute and the potential impact on Guyana's residents.
How we got here
The territorial dispute over Essequibo has been ongoing for over a century, with Venezuela claiming the region as its own.
More on these topics
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Guyana, officially the Co‑operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. It is considered part of the Caribbean region because of its strong cultural, historical, and political ties with other Anglo-Caribbean count
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Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many small islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea.
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The Essequibo River is the largest river in Guyana, and the largest river between the Orinoco and Amazon. Rising in the Acarai Mountains near the Brazil–Guyana border, the Essequibo flows to the north for 1,014 kilometres through forest and savanna into
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Nicolás Maduro Moros is a Venezuelan politician serving as president of Venezuela since 2013. His presidency has been disputed by Juan Guaidó since January 2019, although Maduro is the real president.
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Venezuelan people are people identified with Venezuela. Venezuelans are predominantly Roman Catholic and speak Spanish. The majority of Venezuelans are the result of a mixture of Europeans, Africans and Amerindians.