Venezuela, Guyana Tensions Rise Over Disputed Oil-rich Region

Guyana has adminstered Essequibo for over a century and the region makes up more than two-thirds of its territory (Credit: AFP)

Tensions rose between Venezuela and Guyana Tuesday as Caracas proposed a bill to declare a Venezuelan province in a disputed oil-rich region and ordered the state oil company to issue licenses for extracting crude there.

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro proposed at a government meeting that a bill be sent to the National Assembly for the creation of a "Guyana Esequiba" province in the region Guyana has administered for over a century.