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Peru Says Maritime Dispute With Chile Not To
Affect Bolivia
Peru Says Maritime Dispute With Chile Not To
Affect Bolivia
Lima - Peruvian Foreign Minister Jose Garcia
Belaunde said Tuesday that his country's
maritime dispute with Chile will not affect
the interests of Bolivia.
Peru filed a lawsuit to the International
Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague last
week, demanding maritime re-demarcation with
Chile.
"The judicial proceeding at the ICJ is an
issue only concerns Peru and Chile. We have
informed Bolivian government in advance
about the lawsuit. It isn't connected with
Bolivia," Garcia said.
"This is an offence against Peruvian
interests. It has to do with Peru's
aspirations." Garcia said.
Peru has claimed that the maritime zone had
never been delimited, However Chile says the
current border was established under two
agreements signed in the 1950s. But Peru
argued that those were not boundary
delimitation deals but fishing agreements.
Peru's application at the ICJ requests the
court to determine the course of the
boundary between the maritime zones of the
two states in accordance with international
law.
The dispute dates back to the 1879-1883 War
of the Pacific, in which Peru and Bolivia
lost substantial territory to Chile. Since
then Bolivia is the only Latin American
country without export to the sea.
But the current presidents, Chile's Michelle
Bachelet and Bolivia's Evo Morales, who seem
to get along well, had preliminary talks
about creating a potential Bolivian corridor
through Chilean territory. But Peru's suit
against Chile challenging the current
maritime limits complicates matters.
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