Isla de Anacoco
| Isla de Anacoco / Ankoko Island | ||
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| Waters | Río Cuyuní | |
| Geographical location | 6 ° 44 ′ N , 61 ° 9 ′ W | |
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| length | approx. 4.5 km | |
| width | approx. 1.5 km | |
| surface | 7 km² | |
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The Isla de Anacoco (Spanish) or Ankoko Island (English) is a river island at the confluence of the Río Cuyuní and Río Venamo . The island is divided into the states of Venezuela and Guyana by the border that is not recognized by Venezuela . In fact, the entire island is under Venezuelan administration as part of the state of Bolívar .
description
The island is located at the confluence of the Río Cuyuní and the Río Venamo. The Río Cuyuní, an orographically left tributary of the Essequibo , branches off at this point and thus forms an almost rectangular island, from the south the border river Río Venamo joins it. From the confluence of the Río Cuyuní forms the border. The island occupies an area of 7 km².
There is no civilian population on the island, but Isla de Anacoco is the seat of a Venezuelan military base .
Border disputes
The island became the focus of border disputes between Venezuela and Guyana in the 1960s. The Guyanese government viewed the establishment of a Venezuelan military base on Guyanese territory on October 12, 1966, about five months after gaining independence from Great Britain, as a serious affront. President Forbes Burnham demanded the immediate withdrawal of Venezuelan troops .
The conflict over demarcation, which had been simmering since the 18th century, only came to an end for the time being after an international arbitration in Paris. Today's demarcation was regulated in an agreement on October 3, 1899 and accepted by Venezuela. With the occupation of the island, however, the Venezuelan government declared it null and void and claimed the entire island as part of Guiana Esequiba for itself.
The event still weighs heavily on diplomatic relations between the two countries and there are repeated military incidents. The ongoing occupation of the island is still seen as a provocation by the Guyanese side.
See also
Web links
- History of the Anacoco conflict on guyana.org
Individual evidence
- ↑ Guyana-Venezuela Dispute , country-data.com (English), accessed on February 22, 2014
- ↑ Frontiers: The curse of Ankoko , stabroeknews.com (English) of August 31, 2010, accessed on February 22, 2014