THE HAGUE — Acting President of Venezuela Delcy Rodriguez announced on Saturday that she will travel to The Hague to defend her country's claim to the Essequibo region in proceedings before the International Court of Justice. The case at the United Nations' top civil court pits Venezuela against Guyana over a territory that accounts for two-thirds of Guyana's current land area.

"It has fallen to me to travel in the coming hours to defend our homeland," Rodriguez said in a televised speech. The Essequibo region borders eastern Venezuela and is currently administered by Guyana.

The court is hearing arguments on whether the border established in 1899 under British colonial rule should remain valid or be redrawn based on a 1966 document signed before Guyana gained independence.

The territorial dispute follows ExxonMobil's discovery of offshore oil deposits in the area. The discovery gave Guyana, with a population of less than a million, the largest per capita crude oil reserves in the world.

The trip will be the first time Rodriguez has left Venezuela since the departure of President Nicolas Maduro in January, an event the Venezuelan government has described as an abduction by U.S. forces. Officials attending proceedings at the International Court of Justice are typically granted special legal protections.

Rodriguez was under U.S. sanctions until they were lifted when she became acting president. She has not visited the United States, though she has traveled to Grenada and Barbados.

A supporter of Maduro's Chavismo movement, Rodriguez has maintained relations with Venezuela's internal security apparatus and military. She has complied with U.S. demands to stop oil deliveries to Cuba, open Venezuela's state-owned oil industry to foreign companies, and release political prisoners.