Guyana says Venezuelan vessel entered oil block in Guyanese waters

FILE PHOTO: President of Guyana Mohamed Irfaan Ali addresses the 79th United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters in New York, U.S., September 25, 2024. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File Photo

(Reuters) - Guyanese President Irfaan Ali said on Saturday that a Venezuelan coast guard patrol entered Guyanese waters earlier in the day, approaching an output vessel in an offshore oil block.

The neighboring countries are involved in a long-running dispute about which country controls the 160,000-square-km (62,000-square-mile) Esequibo area, which is the subject of an ongoing case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).