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DATE=12/9/1999
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=HONDURAS - NICARAGUA DISPUTE (L-ONLY)
NUMBER=2-257012
BYLINE=GREG FLAKUS
DATELINE=MEXICO CITY
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO:  Honduran Foreign Minister Roberto Flores has 
welcomed Nicaragua's move to have a territorial 
dispute resolved at the World Court at the Hague (in 
the Netherlands).  But, as V-O-A's Greg Flakus reports 
from Mexico City, tension remains between the two 
Central American nations.
TEXT:  Although the dispute now appears headed towards 
legal resolution, the friction between Honduras and 
Nicaragua is still evident.  Observers in both nations 
say the past few days have been marked by expressions 
of anger and mistrust that undermine the regional 
unity developed through ten years of summit meetings.
Foreign reporters who went to the border area on 
Wednesday said there were troops posted on the 
Nicaraguan side, but that soldiers refused to answer 
whether they had been sent there recently.  There are 
no reports of fighting, but one reporter described the 
border as tense.
The dispute rose out of a maritime treaty between 
Honduras and Colombia, which grants both countries 
access to a large area in the Caribbean sea that 
Nicaragua claims as its territory.  The area is a rich 
fishing ground and is also believed to have oil and 
natural gas deposits.  The area includes several 
islands, including the resort destination of San 
Andres, currently under Colombian control.
Colombia maintains that the agreement with Honduras is 
legal and that it is based on 1928 treaty signed by 
Nicaragua.  But Nicaragua has not recognized that 
treaty as valid since 1980. 
Over the past week, relations between Honduras and 
Nicaragua have become so tense that some observers 
feared an actual shooting war could erupt.  Nicaragua 
prepared to impose trade sanctions on Honduras and 
broke commercial relations. Honduran officials issued 
statements indicating that the nation's armed forces 
were ready to-as it was put-"defend the fatherland."
But other observers say the bellicose attitude on the 
part of both governments may serve the purpose of 
diverting their citizens' attention from more pressing 
problems at home.  (Signed).
NEB/gf/gm  
09-Dec-1999 17:53 PM EDT (09-Dec-1999 2253 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
.