Volatile Situation to Watch: Costa Rican Police Dispatched to Defend Border from Nicaragua

Google Translation:

San Jose (Editor). The Ministry of Public Security sent early hours of the morning, an undisclosed number of police at the eastern end of the border with Nicaragua to protect citizens and Costa Rican territory, after the Government reported a violation the sovereignty of the northern neighbor.

The radio reported DNA from 6 am, an aerial deployment of officers from Base 2 Juan Santamaría airport in Alajuela. The policemen were traveling armed and food supplies, as seen in footage from Channel 7.

Jose Maria Tijerina, Security Minister, said the mobilization aims to ensure that Nicaragua does not violate national soil again, after checking that the country threw debris from dredging the river San Juan to Isla Calero, on the border of Pococí, Limón.

This fact led yesterday delivered a diplomatic protest to the ambassador of Nicaragua in Costa Rica, Harold Rivas.

DNA-Tijerino said, officers will be in the area as long as is necessary to ensure respect for the neighbors and Costa Rican soil.

www.nacion.com...

Now if I remember correctly, there is a substantial US force in Costa Rica, and I can't see them letting this get too far out of hand if things escalate. But to send armed police against a military, I don't need to wonder how that is going to turn out....

Translate that link and read some of the comments...One guy there thinks it is pretty serious, and there could be trouble. Hot Latin tempers don't take long to flare in situations like these- although the Costa Ricans tend to be more level-headed. (I used to live there.)

The 'substantial' force are not IN Costa Rica, the are on the coast apparently doing lots of humanitarian work in Limón.

I very much doubt anything will happen, the border between CR and Nico is hardly that secure and there´s not normally any problems there. Obviously La Nación is going to report it in a slightly alarmist way. For the amount the police get paid here it is quite unlikely that they will be willing to risk their lives over this, as is the case when there are other life and death crime situations in the rest of the country.

I have heard from ticos that the river on the border has been in dispute before but full on war is highly unlikely, it is not in the interest of Nico or Costa Rica.

this about some trash dredged up in a waterway.. not a border war..
dont get your thong in a twist..
theres 47 warships 200 helicoptors 7,000 marines.
of limon, with invitation until jan.
.what they are actually there for may involve mr chavez..
would that they were repositioned on the us.border-
a dispute far more lethal .
theres 1000's of nicas working in costa-
one was on the crew that built my little hideout there.
-theres about a million ticos working in the states.
for some reason trenton ..
pura vida y'all .

Maybe this will be like the Soccer War? Who knows.

Nicaragua takes deployment of Costa Rican policemen at border as 'provocation'

President of the Nicaraguan National Assembly (NA) Rene Nunez said Friday the deployment of Costa Rican policemen at its border was "provocation."

Nunez told the press that he does not understand the decision taken by Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla of sending troops to the border, where at this moment the Nicaraguan government is carrying out works to clean the San Juan River in San Carlos province.

"I do not understand the reason for this action of sending armed policemen, as Costa Rica knows that Nicaragua has the full sovereignty over San Juan River, so it has all the right to clean it," he said.

Costa Rica has said it deployed policemen in order to know what was carried out at the common border with Nicaragua.

world.globaltimes.cn...

Like I said, volatile situation to watch.

Originally posted by p51mustang
this about some trash dredged up in a waterway.. not a border war..
dont get your thong in a twist..
theres 47 warships 200 helicoptors 7,000 marines.
of limon, with invitation until jan.
.what they are actually there for may involve mr chavez..
would that they were repositioned on the us.border-
a dispute far more lethal .
theres 1000's of nicas working in costa-
one was on the crew that built my little hideout there.
-theres about a million ticos working in the states.
for some reason trenton ..
pura vida y'all .

There aren't 47 ships off Costa Rica, or 7000 Marines for that matter. However the USS Iwo Jima is steaming in the area for Continuing Promise 2010, nice name. It's currently making a port visit in Georgetown Guyana.

www.southcom.mil...

www.navy.mil...