CARACAS, July 10, 2025 (RTSG) – The Venezuelan government has flatly denied Guyanan President Irfaan Ali’s assertion that large volumes of Venezuelan gold are being spirited across the border into his country.
In a communiqué earlier this month, officials in Caracas branded Ali’s remarks “outrageous fabrications,” arguing that the Guyanese leader is fully aware there is no evidence to support the charge. The statement was especially scathing about the venue in which Ali spoke—a U.S.-Independence-Day gathering at Washington’s embassy in Georgetown—calling it proof that he was “reporting to his true patrons.”
U.S. Ambassador Nicole Theriot, sharing the podium with Ali, hailed bilateral security cooperation as stronger than ever. Ali, for his part, said Georgetown is committing “enormous resources” to dismantle alleged smuggling networks that could, in his words, “empower undemocratic forces.”
Media outlets in Guyana have cited recent seizures of gold shipments purportedly linked to Minerven, Venezuela’s state mining firm. Thus far, customs authorities have offered no documentation tying the confiscated bullion to Venezuelan mines. Industry analysts likewise note that Guyanese gold exports have not shown a marked rise in the wake of U.S. sanctions against Minerven, first imposed in 2019.
Caracas argues that the smuggling narrative is being used to justify an expanded U.S. military footprint near Venezuela’s eastern frontier. The two nations are already at odds over ExxonMobil-led oil drilling in waters Venezuela considers undelimited, and over occasional armed skirmishes along the rainforest border.
All of this unfolds against the backdrop of a 200-year dispute over the 160,000-square-kilometre Essequibo region—known in Caracas as Guayana Esequiba—now before the International Court of Justice. Venezuela maintains that only the 1966 Geneva Agreement, which calls for a mutually negotiated settlement, is legally binding; Guyana is asking the court to uphold an 1899 arbitration award made under British tutelage.
In May, Venezuelan voters elected a symbolic governor and legislators for a prospective Guayana Esequiba state, a move Georgetown condemned as provocative. With the smuggling controversy adding fresh fuel to long-running tensions, observers expect both capitals—and Washington—to keep the rhetorical fire hot in the months ahead.
Sources: Venezuelanalysis; DPI Guyana; The Wall Street Journal
Written by Louis, Edited by Seraph
