Gulf of Venezuela

This article does not cite any sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Gulf of Venezuela" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (December 2009) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

The Gulf of Venezuela is a gulf of the

to the south.

Location

The Gulf is located in the north of

. Colombia and Venezuela have had a longstanding dispute over control of the gulf that has not been resolved, despite the decades-long negotiations conducted by a bilateral commission.

History

The gulf was first seen by Europeans in 1499, when an expedition commanded by Alonso de Ojeda, in which he was accompanied by Amerigo Vespucci, explored the Venezuelan coasts. They compiled information and named the new lands; this expedition arrived at the gulf after passing through the Netherlands Antilles and the Peninsula of Paraguaná.

Caribbean sea

.

Economic importance

These waters are important because they connect the

. Their industry uses the gulf to ship products from their wells and refineries in Lake Maracaibo to the world markets.

See also

• El Calabozo cove