Nicaragua expansionism

Media outlets in Nicaragua on Wednesday reported about the International Court of Justice ruling mostly by citing Nicaraguan representative at The Hague Carlos Argüello, who avoided calling the justices' final rulings negative for his country and instead referred to them as “balanced.”

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) at The Hague gave its final ruling Wednesday in Costa Rica's long-running border dispute with Nicaragua. Here's what the court found.

Costa Rican officials reported Monday that wetlands near the Nicaraguan border are recovering after suffering damages from dredging work carried out by Nicaragua in disputed territory.

Costa Rica's lawyers at The Hague said that Nicaragua had changed its position on numerous occasions throughout the case.

Experts for Nicaragua said the amount of sediment varies between 190,000 and 250,000 tons per year, and that the sediment is reducing the depth of the river in a perpetual process that modifies its geography and makes navigation increasingly difficult.

A legal team representing the Nicaraguan government on Friday concluded a first round of hearings at the International Court of Justice by arguing that no evidence exists to show dredging on the San Juan River had caused environmental damage in the border area, as Costa Rica’s attorneys claimed earlier this week.

Costa Rica’s legal team on Wednesday wrapped up a first stage of hearings at The Hague-based International Court of Justice with closing arguments in a case against Nicaragua for the alleged invasion of three square kilometers of wetlands during dredging operations in the border area.

Closing arguments are scheduled to last until May 1. A ruling could come later this year.

A serious national security problem is emerging in the Caribbean Basin, much neglected by Washington. Banging the final nail in the coffin of the Monroe Doctrine, Russia’s Vladimir Putin is joining China in building a trans-oceanic canal through Nicaragua, as well as a military supply facility.