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Costa Rica Respects Nicaragua's
Sovereignty Over San Juan River
President Abel Pacheco de la
Espriella said Sunday in his
weekly radio broadcast that
Costa Rica country does not
question or object to
Nicaragua's sovereignty over the
San Juan River which has been a
sore point for the two countries
for almost a decade.
The Costa Rican government
earlier this week asked the
International Court of Justice
based in The Hague to decide on
the issue of free navigation of
its armed police on the river.
Nicaragua reacted by recalling
it's ambassador to Costa Rica
and for president Enrique
Bolaños to make a call to more
army patrols of the river.
Pacheco said they aren't
demanding more than the rights
granted to them by law. He
stressed that Nicaragua has also
in the past turned to the
international court to settle
disputes with other countries.
Pacheco also called for
restraint to avoid deterioration
of bilateral commercial
relations.
Last week, in addition to
recalling its ambassador,
Nicaraguan lawmakers introduced
a bill to charge tariffs of 35%
on products and services from
Costa Rica.
The San Juan River, which marks
the border of the two countries
but runs through Nicaraguan
territory, has been a hot spot
since 1998, when then-Nicaraguan
President Arnoldo Aleman banned
armed Costa Rican police patrol
boats from the river.
Costa Rica insists that it
should have full navigation
rights based on the 1858
Canas-Jerez Treaty, which
granted ownership of the river
to Nicaragua but permitted
commercial use by Costa Rica on
a section of the river along its
border.
Tensions subsided in September
2002, when Nicaragua and Costa
Rica agreed to have a three-year
truce to negotiate the issue.
The treaty expired last Monday.
Officials have not been able to
hammer out a new deal
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