Costa Rica condemned the “unrealistic” and “fairy tale” claims of Nicaragua in the border dispute between the two countries to be heard by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague.
The ICJ ruled in 2015 regarding the small border territory known as Isla Calera (Harbor Head in Nicaragua), recognizing that it belongs to Costa Rica.
Now, both countries return to the ICJ to try to define maritime boundaries in both the Pacific and the Caribbean.
According to Costa Rican ambassador to the Netherlands, Sergio Ugalde, the countries began negotiations in 1976 to try to reach an agreement along the course of the San Juan River.
For 40 years Costa Rica has managed to negotiate its maritime borders with all its neighbors except Nicaragua,”
lamented Ugalde.
But since it has not been possible to establish maritime borders with Nicaragua, Costa Rica decided to bring the case before the United Nations tribunal so that it could be defined in accordance with international law.
Nicaragua will present its arguments on Thursday and all arguments will have been filed on July 13th, although a decision is not expected until the end of this year or the beginning of the next.
Court experts also visited the disputed areas.
The case first came before the ICJ in 2014, when Costa Rica said it had exhausted all its diplomatic resources to solve the conflict.
According to the Costa Rican ambassador, Nicaragua “relies heavily on few realistic or exaggerated claims,” resulting in an “extreme reshaping of the real geography” in disputed areas, including the Costa Rican peninsula of Santa Elena.
Nicaragua’s speech has fundamentally changed,”
said Ugalde, asserting that Nicaragua is now trying to base its claims on a 1977 treaty that was not ratified by both countries.
The ICJ will also have to decide on the border boundaries in Isla Portillos, where, according to the Costa Rican ambassador, Nicaragua established a military camp on a beach in December to be able to claim that territory.
Costa Rica relies once again on the same team of legal experts who got the victory in 2015, when the court ruled in its favor in another border dispute with Nicaragua.
Back then, the tribunal ruled that Costa Rica had sovereignty over the swamp area of San Juan.
The court also awarded Costa Rica compensation for damages caused by Nicaragua’s illegal activities in Costa Rican territory.
However, the two countries still have not agreed on the amount of economic compensation and will have to return to the ICJ to settle it.