Ankoko Island

Ankoko Island (Spanish: Isla de Anacoco) is an island located at the confluence of the Cuyuni River and Wenamu River, at 6°43′N 61°8′W, on the border between Venezuela and Guyana.

The Ankoko Island border was finalized in 1905 by the British-Venezuelan Mixed Boundry Commission, in accordance with the Arbitral Award of 3 October 1899. Venezuelan commissioners Abraham Tirado and Elias Toro surveyed the area of the boundary for demarcation and, along with two British surveyors, all participants agreed and signed off on the border in 1905. Domestically, Venezuelans were vocal in their disappointment with the 1899 ruling. In the 20th century, the government of Venezuela officially sought to abrogate the legal borders and revert to the colonial boundary of the Essequibo river as set by the Spanish Empire. In 1966, five months after Guyana gained independence, the Venezuelan armed forces crossed the boundary on Ankoko Island and has occupied the Guyanese side of the island ever since, in violation of the peace treaty set forth by the Geneva Agreement.

The status of the island is subject to the Geneva Agreement, which was signed by the United Kingdom, Venezuela and British Guiana on 17 February 1966. This treaty stipulates that the parties will agree to find a practical, peaceful and satisfactory solution to the border dispute. Venezuela, which claims Ankoko Island as its own in the Guyana–Venezuela territorial dispute, established a military base on the island in 1966, which Guyana claims as an intrusion and aggression on its sovereign territory.

Due to a stalemate in talks and lack of progress with the Geneva Agreement, the Secretary-General referred the entire matter to the International Court of Justice. On 18 December 2020, the ICJ accepted the case submitted by Guyana to settle the dispute.