Oil-Rich Essequibo Region at Center of Guyana-Venezuela Strife

The UK has condemned what it has termed as the "unjustified" actions of Venezuela after Caracas sent more than  5,600 armed forces personnel to participate in a military exercise in response to the UK sending a warship near the border with Guyana. On Thursday, Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro announced he was launching "a joint action of a defensive nature in response to the provocation and threat of the United Kingdom, which he said are against peace and the sovereignty of Venezuela. Britain had, a few days earlier, announced…