US, Russian troops get green light to train Nicaraguan forces

MANAGUA — Nicaragua’s legislature Tuesday gave a green light for US and Russian troops to take part in joint exercises to train local forces fighting drug traffickers and organized crime.

The legislature voted 66-20 to approve the operations on the Pacific and Caribbean coasts. No dates were immediately given.

The United States and the former Soviet Union waged a proxy war in the Central American nation during the 1980s. Current Sandinista President Daniel Ortega was among the country’s revolutionary leaders back then.