OREANDA-NEWS. Caracas is denouncing Guyana's cancellation of Venezuelan state-owned airline Conviasa's permit to fly to Georgetown, the latest flare-up in bilateral relations that was recently triggered by a fresh round of oil exploration in disputed territory.

Guyana suspended Conviasa?s permit to operate in Cheddi Jagan international airport in Georgetown from 6 June for defaulting on a bond that is meant to indemnify travelers if the Venezuelan carrier fails to fulfill its flight obligations.

Venezuela?s transportation ministry told Argus the move is retaliation for President Nicolas Maduro's recent creation of a new maritime security zone in the disputed Essequibo region.

Conviasa has operated a weekly flight on Saturdays from Puerto Ordaz in Bolivar state to Georgetown since 2014.

A senior transportation ministry official in Caracas said today that Guyana's government is "punishing Conviasa and hurting innocent travelers to retaliate against Venezuela's defense of its sovereign territorial rights."

Conviasa declined to comment. But a Conviasa manager at Simon Bolivar international airport near Caracas said the carrier has been unable to post the financial bond required by Guyana?s civil aviation authorities because of a shortage of hard currency.

Conviasa currently has five operational aircraft to cover its local and international routes, the official said.

Guyana's civil aviation authority has given Conviasa a "one-off" flight to take home about 40 Venezuelans who were stranded at Guyana's international airport, Guyana?s public infrastructure minister David Patterson said.

Bilateral tensions have flared up with a revival of oil exploration off Guyana in the Essequibo area over which Venezuela has long claimed sovereignty. ExxonMobil last month declared a "significant" oil discovery in the Stabroek block, part of the area that Caracas has now demarcated as a maritime security zone.