The Indian government has urged Venezuela and Guyana to "avoid escalatory steps" over the border dispute which has flared up over the control of oil-rich Essequibo province.
“We believe the issue should be resolved peacefully and escalatory steps avoided. We welcome the recent regional diplomatic initiatives on the issue,” India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a press release on Tuesday.
The MEA stated that it was "closely following" the developments pertaining to the border row.
"We are aware that the matter is already being considered by the International Court of Justice (ICJ)," the Indian statement noted.
Essequibo comprises two-thirds of Guyana's territory and has huge offshore deposits of oil and natural gas.
Guyana's sovereignty over the province has been disputed by Venezuela for centuries, but the recent discovery of offshore energy reserves is said to be the immediate trigger for renewed tensions.
Troops from both the countries are deployed at the border in view of the political tensions. Last week, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro called a referendum in which Venezuelan voters backed the creation of new Venezuelan state and rejected ICJ's jurisdiction on the dispute.
On the other hand, Guyana's President Irfaan Ali has said that Guyana's boundary isn't "up for discussion". The Guyanese president has backed ICJ's jurisdiction in mediating the dispute.
According to reports, Ali and Maduro are scheduled to meet in the Caribbean Island of St Vincent on Thursday to deliberate on the matter.
Last week, Ali held talks with Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) as well as United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.