Costa Rica–Nicaragua San Juan River border dispute

[citation needed] A dispute emerged in 1998 when Nicaragua forbade the transit of Costa Rican policemen in the river, which Nicaragua claims to be a breach of sovereignty, and unilaterally imposed a US$25 tax for any Costa Rican tourists who enter the San Juan river, as persons are not objects of trade but subjects of trade and are, therefore, not covered by the treaty.

On July 13, 2009, the International Court of Justice published the following ruling:[4] On October 8, 2010, the Nicaraguan government initiated operations to dredge 33 kilometres (21 mi) of the San Juan River, led by commander Edén Pastora.

[9][10] According to a Costa Rican newspaper, Edén Pastora justified his actions based on the border as shown by Google Maps and the need to combat drug trafficking.

"[15] He added, "In this instance Google has determined that there was an inaccuracy in the shaping of the border between Costa Rica and Nicaragua and is working to update the information as quickly as possible.

He then called for both countries to remove all troops and security personnel from the disputed territory as a first step toward opening a dialogue to resolve the situation peacefully and demarcate the boundary to prevent further conflicts.

[14] On a meeting on November 12, by a vote of 22 to 2, the OAS ambassadors approved a resolution requesting Costa Rica and Nicaragua to pull out their troops from a conflict zone along their common border and to hold talks to settle their dispute.

[18] Nicaragua's President Daniel Ortega discarded the possibility of withdrawing the troops and disregarded the OAS resolution because his government considered this organization not to have jurisdiction to resolve border disputes.

[17] In the same press conference, President Ortega announced his intention to file a claim with the International Court of Justice for permission to navigate the Costa Rican Colorado River.

Nevertheless, Costa Rica argued it was necessary for protection from the "Sandinistas" and for providing electricity and other needs to people who live in a remote location, for whom the only previous transit method was by boat in the San Juan River.

On 2 February 2018, the International Court of Justice ruled that "The total amount of compensation awarded to Costa Rica is US$378,890.59 to be paid by Nicaragua by 2 April 2018.

The ICJ concluded that the whole beach was Costa Rican except for the part directly between the lagoon and the Caribbean Sea - now a tiny enclave of Nicaraguan territory separated from the rest of the country.