Victory for Colombia: The Hague Court denies Nicaragua's claim over the San Andres Sea
Colombia continues to maintain full jurisdiction over the islands of San Andrés and Providencia
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has rejected Nicaragua's request to extend its continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles from its coast, in a ruling issued this Thursday. With a vote of 13 votes against and four in favor, the Court in The Hague has determined that Nicaragua is not entitled to an extended line within 200 miles of Colombia's baseline, nor to an extended platform within miles nautical of San Andrés and Providencia.
The president of the Court of The Hague, Joan Donoghue, read the ruling that establishes that Nicaragua does not have rights to an extended platform in the mentioned area. It should be noted that Colombia and Nicaragua have been involved in maritime territorial disputes for several years. The ICJ has received three lawsuits related to this dispute and, in two of them, Colombia has lost part of its waters to Nicaragua.
It is important to highlight that, despite these losses, Colombia maintains full jurisdiction over the islands of San Andrés and Providencia. With this latest ruling, the third lawsuit has been resolved in favor of Colombia, since the Court of The Hague has not supported Nicaragua's claims to expand its maritime limits.
This ruling represents an important result for Colombia in the framework of the territorial dispute with Nicaragua. The decision of the Court in The Hague supports the Colombian position and protects the country's maritime interests in the region. Both nations must respect and abide by the ruling issued by the Court, setting a precedent in the peaceful resolution of territorial conflicts.
