The ICJ which is examining the territorial dispute has ordered the Venezualan Government to do nothing to alter the status quo. The consensus is tha Maduro is testing the strenght of his support. as caiman27 implies. THe UK has a defence training agreement with Guyana but asa far as I know nothing public by way of an agreement to provide miltary support.
Judges at the World Court on Friday ordered Venezuela to refrain from taking any action that would alter the situation on the ground in a potentially oil-rich territory that is the subject of a border dispute with Guyana, which controls the area.
The court did not expressly forbid Venezuela from going ahead with a referendum on Sunday over its rights to the region around the Esequibo river, as Guyana has requested.
But judges at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) - as the World Court is formally known - ruled that any move to alter the status quo should be stopped."The court observes that the situation that currently prevails in the territory in dispute is that Guyana administers and exercises control over that area," presiding judge Joan Donoghue said.
"Venezuela must refrain from taking any action which would modify that situation," she added.
(...)
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has vociferously encouraged voters to approve the referendum, in what political analysts say is a test of government support ahead of planned 2024 presidential elections, rather than a prelude to bellicose action.
The referendum, which is "consultative" and can be approved by simple majority, asks Venezuelans, among other things, if they agree to incorporate the region and create a state called Guayana Esequiba.
The analysts said the referendum will probably be approved, given the lack of any 'no' campaign and the likelihood that voters who are opposed will stay home.
Friday's ruling is the latest development in the larger border dispute. The ICJ said in April it had jurisdiction over the case, but a final ruling could be years away.
World Court orders Venezuela to refrain from action in border dispute with Guyana