Parallel 15 as it is known (referring to 15th line of latitude north) comes straight out of Cabo Gracias a Dios, the site where Columbus washed ashore on his fourth failed voyage in search of a passage to India. Parallel 15 is more or less where the northeast corner of Nicaragua enters the Caribbean Sea. But since the border with Honduras runs at an upward angle,

Nicaragua felt that its territorial waters should extend angularly out onto the continental shelf. Honduras, naturally, felt differently: that the obvious demarcation should run straight east.

This international dispute began after Nicaragua under Somoza agreed in the International Court at the Hague to cede a large chunk of its northeastern territory to Honduras, what is known as the Mosquitía, back in the late 1950s. Offshore rights were somehow left out of that settlement. Then Colombia came onto the scene, making a deal with Honduras to recognize its claim in exchange for more rights to the continental shelf.

Colombia had already taken over a large chunk of offshore Nicaragua back in the early 20th Century in exchange for allowing the separation of Panama in order to form a new republic that would let a canal be built through it. That arrangement, brokered by the United States, resulted in international litigation around the possession of the Caribbean islands of San Andrés, Providence, Quitasueño, and Roncador that has yet to be resolved, at least according to the Nicaraguans.

For quite some time, nationalist sentiments and resentments were building up. A turf war between Honduras and Nicaragua, two diminutive countries that are the poorest on the continental mainland of the Americas, was unlikely. But history has shown that such a thing is never completely out of the question, which is why the military in both countries have been keeping themselves in a state of readiness. This has resulted in ongoing discussions about a “balance of forces” in the region. Nicaragua has been hanging onto what it can of its stock of Soviet-era surface-to-air missiles while Honduras has fighter bomber jets. Colombia has even more military arms.

Besides national pride, at stake was the wealth of seafood resources. The grouping of islands known as the Mosquito Keys is a breeding ground for lobsters, shrimp, and other marine species of commercial value.

And then there are persistent reports of petroleum resources in the vicinity. Some exploratory wells were drilled offshore in the 1970s. An aerial survey by Soviet planes in the 1980s indicated the existence of a significant amount of oil, with speculative estimates of up to billion of barrels. At today’s prices… well, you can do the math.

Meanwhile on the Pacific side, there is constant arguing over the territorial rights of Honduras, Nicaragua, and El Salvador in the Gulf of Fonseca. Once again, fishery resources are the bone of contention. Over the years, different buoys were installed to mark where the rights of one country end and the other’s begin. These, of course, were often ignored and from time to time, reports of one navy or another capturing fishing boats from the other country appeared in the press.

Now, apparently, the neighbors are getting together to work out a relationship mutually beneficial to all three. These two settlements are happening on President Daniel Ortega’s watch. Who knows? At this rate, perhaps he may be able to bring a final resolution to the dispute with Costa Rica over the San Juan River that marks much of the border between the two countries.