WASHINGTON, March 1 (Reuters) - The U.S. State

Department on Saturday said Venezuelan naval vessels operating

near Exxonmobil's ( XOM ) floating unit in Guyanese territorial waters

were unacceptable, calling it a clear violation of Guyana's

territory.

"Further provocation will result in consequences for the

Maduro regime. The United States reaffirms its support for

Guyana's territorial integrity and the 1899 arbitral award," the

department's Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs said in a post

on X.