Venezuela's Southern Border: Brazil (2,200 km)

Venezuela's southern border is formed entirely by Brazil — a 2,200 km (1,367 mi) frontier running from the Atlantic coast to the tripoint with Colombia/Guyana.

Geographic Profile

• East end: Atlantic Ocean (near Cape Orange, Brazil / Delta Amacuro, Venezuela)
• West end: Triple border: Venezuela–Brazil–Colombia (near San José de Guaviare region)
• Terrain: Amazon rainforest (south), Guiana Shield highlands (central), Orinoco basin (north)
• Key rivers: Orinoco (northern boundary), Negro/Branco (Brazilian side), Casiquiare canal (unique bifurcation linking Orinoco ↔ Rio Negro)

Political-Administrative

Key Features

• Pico da Neblina (2,995 m) — Brazil's highest point, on the border
• Casiquiare Canal — World's largest river bifurcation (Orinoco → Amazon basins)
• Indigenous territories: Yanomami (both sides), Piaroa, Ye'kuana, Sanumá
• Crossings: Few formal — Santa Elena de Uairén (BR-174) is main land crossing; river/air otherwise

Strategic Context

• Dense jungle = porous border, hard to patrol
• Illegal mining (gold, coltan), drug transit, guerrilla presence (ELN, FARC dissidents)
• Brazil-Venezuela relations fluctuate; border commission meets intermittently
• 1984 Treaty of Limits defined the line; no major disputes

This is one of South America's wildest, least-populated frontiers — more jaguar than customs officer.