Nicaragua Pledges to
Safeguard Sovereignty
Near Disputed Island
Nicaragua's government
plans to use all
diplomatic means to
"safeguard its national
sovereignty'' near a
Caribbean island that
both Colombia and
Nicaragua claim as their
own.
Colombia has openly
disregarded
international court
rulings by continuing to
exert control over
waters surrounding San
Andres island,
Nicaragua's foreign
ministry said today in a
statement on its Web
site.
The two countries have
been increasing their
rhetoric over the
island, which caters to
tourists and borders
fishing grounds, and
last week Nicaraguan
President Daniel Ortega
said Colombia was
provoking military
tensions by not allowing
Nicaraguan fishermen
near San Andres.
Colombia responded two
days later by saying it
was exerting appropriate
jurisdiction.
In December, the
Hague-based
International Court
refused to hear
Nicaragua's challenge to
the ownership of San
Andres and two other
islands it claims as its
own, finding that a
treaty from 1928 gave
them to Colombia. Yet
the court also said that
the maritime boundaries
surrounding San Andreas
hadn't been fully
settled, leaving them
open to legal dispute.
Nicaragua's foreign
minister told reporters
today that he would
petition the United
Nations to look into the
matter.
The islands in question,
San Andres, Providencia
and Santa Catalina, are
spread over about 50,000
square kilometers
(19,300 square miles) in
waters north of Colombia
and east of Nicaragua.
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