World Court ruling on Bolivia sea access could force Chile to negotiate

DRAMA!

SANTIAGO/LA PAZ (Reuters) - A World Court ruling next week on Bolivia’s claim that Chile has ducked a legal obligation to discuss access to the sea could force the Andean neighbours to the negotiating table over a land spat lingering since the 19th century.

The International Court of Justice in The Hague, which settles legal disputes between United Nations member states, is due to announce on Monday its findings in the row, which came to a head after landlocked Bolivia filed a lawsuit in 2013 seeking to force Chile to negotiate access to the Pacific Ocean.

If the ICJ rules in favor of Bolivia, it can order Chile into a negotiation of “good faith” with its neighbour. But the question of “good faith” is a thorny one, said Paul Reichler, a Washington-based attorney who specializes in representing states before the ICJ for Foley Hoag law firm.

“For Chile to engage in good faith negotiations, does that mean it has to be willing to cede as least some of its sovereign territory? Most states would not give any territory.”

A more realistic outcome of “good faith” negotiations could be for Chile to offer other ways to help facilitate Bolivia’s trade, like free access to more Chilean ports, or highways or railways built for Bolivia on Chilean land, Reichler said.

While the ICJ’s rulings are binding for U.N. members, it has no power to enforce them.

Reichler said the case was the first of its kind before the ICJ - involving a claim by one state that there was a breach of an obligation by another to negotiate a cession of territory - and it is unlikely to spur similar legal battles.

“It would be next to impossible to find a parallel situation,” he said.