Belize-Guatemala Border: A Dotted History

The border between Belize and Guatemala is dotted because it is disputed. Guatemala has claimed sovereignty over Belize, in whole or in part, since Belize's independence. The border dispute stems from colonial documents, first between the United Kingdom and Spain, and later between the United Kingdom, on behalf of British Honduras (now Belize), and independent Guatemala. Guatemala argues that the 1859 Wyke-Aycinena Treaty, which established the modern-day boundary lines of Belize, is void because Britain failed to comply with economic assistance provisions. While the dispute has been quieter since Belize's independence, Guatemala has continued to assert its claims, and both countries have stationed troops at the border.

Guatemala disputes the validity of the 1859 Wyke-Aycinena Treaty

Guatemala has a long history of disputing the validity of the 1859 Wyke-Aycinena Treaty, which was signed by Pedro de Aycinena, the Guatemalan foreign minister, and Charles Lennox Wyke, the British chargé d'affaires and plenipotentiary to Guatemala. The treaty, which confirmed British sovereignty over Belize, has been controversial since its inception.

One of the main points of contention is Article 7, which ambiguously calls for both governments to cooperate in the construction of a transit way from Guatemala City to the Atlantic coast "near the settlement of Belize". Disputes over each government's expected contribution prevented the article's fulfillment. An additional convention in 1863 attempted to clarify Article 7, but lapsed because of Guatemala's failure to ratify it.

Guatemala held that the treaty was a ""disguised cession" of territory, possibly violating the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty of 1850, for which the road was compensation. The British, on the other hand, saw it as a simple boundary agreement, defining the limits of previously held territory.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Guatemala's potential for agricultural exploitation attracted several foreign companies, including the United Fruit Company, which was supported by the country's authoritarian rulers and the United States government. This further complicated the situation, as the United States often sided with Guatemala in its claims.

In the 1930s, Guatemala officially tried to declare the treaty null and void, but Britain suggested taking the matter to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which Guatemala rejected. It wasn't until 2018 that Guatemala finally agreed to submit its claim to the ICJ, and in 2019, Belizeans voted to do the same.

The dispute has been ongoing for over a century, and while it has quieted down since Belize's independence, it remains unresolved as both countries work to settle their differences at the ICJ.

Guatemala's claim stems from a pre-independence convention

Guatemala's claim to Belizean territory stems from a pre-independence 1786 Convention, which places a vague historic boundary in the Sibun River, north of the current border.

During the late 1600s and throughout the 1700s, Britain and Spain signed several treaties regarding territories in the Americas. Both nations agreed that modern-day Belize was under Spanish sovereignty, although British settlers could use the land for specific purposes and in specific areas. The area was never fully under British or Spanish rule at this time, and British settlers continually expanded far past the boundaries set by the treaties.

In 1821, Guatemala gained independence from Spain and Mexico. From 1823 to 1841, it was part of the Federal Republic of Central America. During this time, the new nations claimed they had inherited Spain's sovereign rights in the area. Guatemala's claims were twofold: they either claimed all of the Bay of Honduras, as Spain had previously, or they shared claims with Mexico, splitting the land in two along the Sibun River, with Mexico taking the northern half.

In 1850, Britain signed the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty, which stated that neither Britain nor the U.S. could extend their influence by occupation, land exchange, colonisation, or building fortifications in Central America. This presented a problem for Britain, as the last time the settlement's boundaries were negotiated was in 1786, and the local government had unilaterally declared new expansive boundaries by then.

In 1859, Guatemala and Britain negotiated the Wyke-Aycinena Treaty regarding the disputed area. The treaty stated that Guatemala would recognise British sovereignty over the region and formed the modern-day boundary lines of Belize. However, Guatemala later disputed this treaty, claiming it was void since Britain failed to comply with economic assistance provisions found in Article VII. The situation was partially resolved in 1991 when Guatemala officially recognised Belize's independence and diplomatic relations were established.

Guatemala's claims to Belizean territory have varied over time, and currently, Guatemala seems to map all of Belize as disputed territory.

Britain failed to uphold economic provisions of the 1859 treaty

The Belize–Guatemala border is a dotted line because the border is disputed. The border is defined by the Wyke–Aycinena Treaty of 1859, which states that the border begins at the mouth of the River Sarstoon in the Bay of Honduras and follows a straight line to the Mexican frontier. Guatemala claims that the treaty is void because Britain failed to comply with economic assistance provisions found in Article VII. This article stated that a mutually beneficial road would be built from Guatemala to the Belizean coast.

The economic provisions of the 1859 treaty were never upheld. Although the treaty was initially upheld by both parties, less than 10 years later, Guatemala renewed its claims on the area, using the broken promise of the road as justification for the treaty to be void. Britain stationed troops in Belize to secure the region against Guatemalan invasion. Many negotiations attempting to resolve the dispute took place over the following decades, but ultimately proved futile.

The failure to uphold the economic provisions of the 1859 treaty can be attributed to several factors. Firstly, the ambiguity of Article VII, which did not specify the details of the road, such as who would pay for it, who would build it, and where it would be placed. This ambiguity led to disagreements between Britain and Guatemala on how to implement the road clause. Negotiations stalled, and Guatemala flatly rejected an Additional Convention proposed by Britain. Britain then declared that they were no longer obligated to build the road, which Guatemala disputed, stating that the treaty was one of cession of territory with compensation being the road.

Another factor was the conflicting interpretations of Article VII by the negotiators. Wyke, the British negotiator, understood the article to mean that the burden of building the road was shared between Britain and Guatemala. In contrast, Aycinena, the Guatemalan negotiator, believed that the full burden was on Britain alone. This disagreement created a stalemate, with neither party willing to compromise.

Furthermore, Britain's refusal to agree to Guatemala's terms regarding the road was due to the 1850 Clayton-Bulwer Treaty, which stated that neither Britain nor the United States could extend their influence by occupation, land exchange, colonisation, or building fortifications in Central America. Britain argued that building the road and paying compensation as demanded by Guatemala would violate this treaty.

The failure to uphold the economic provisions of the 1859 treaty had significant consequences. The dispute between Belize and Guatemala persisted for decades, with Guatemala periodically massing troops on the border and threatening invasion. Britain maintained a military presence in Belize to protect the region. Despite gaining independence in 1981, Belize continued to face threats from Guatemala, which did not recognise its independence until the early 1990s. The dispute has caused tension and instability in the region, with both countries stationing troops at the border and establishing an "adjacency zone".

In summary, Britain's failure to uphold the economic provisions of the 1859 treaty can be attributed to ambiguous wording, conflicting interpretations, and external treaty obligations. This failure has had lasting impacts, with the dispute remaining unresolved for over a century and continuing to cause tension between Belize and Guatemala.

Guatemala recognised Belize's independence in the early 1990s

The border between Belize and Guatemala is dotted because of a long-running territorial dispute between the two Central American nations. The roots of the dispute can be traced back to the 17th century when British settlers first arrived in the region.

Guatemala recognised Belize's independence in 1991, and diplomatic relations were established. However, this did not mean the end of the territorial dispute. Guatemala has continued to claim, in whole or in part, the territory of Belize, and the dispute has flared up intermittently throughout the 20th century.

The dispute stems from colonial documents and several treaties signed between Britain and Spain in the late 1600s and throughout the 1700s regarding territories in the Americas. Both nations agreed that what is now Belize was under Spanish sovereignty, although British settlers were allowed to use the land for specific purposes and in specific areas. The British settlers, however, expanded far past the boundaries set by the treaties. When the Spanish Empire fell, Guatemala claimed it inherited Spain's sovereign rights over the territory.

In 1859, Guatemala and Britain negotiated the Wyke-Aycinena Treaty, which stated that Guatemala recognised British sovereignty over the region and formed the modern-day boundary lines of Belize. The treaty also included an article about building a mutually beneficial road, although this road was never built. In the following decades, tensions rose as Guatemala renewed its claims on the area, using the broken promise of the road as justification for the 1859 treaty to be void.

In the lead-up to Belize's independence in 1981, Guatemala, the UK, and Belize negotiated the Heads of Agreement treaty to settle the dispute. However, this treaty was rejected by the Belizean people, causing a state of emergency. Belize became independent without reaching an agreement with Guatemala, and Britain maintained a military presence in the country to protect it from a potential Guatemalan invasion.

In the early 1990s, Guatemala formally recognised Belize as an independent state, and the British defence guarantee ended. However, Guatemala made clear that while it recognised Belize's independence, it did not accept its boundaries. The territorial dispute heated up again in the late 1990s, and in 2008, the two countries agreed to submit their case to the International Court of Justice, subject to referendums in both countries.

Both countries are settling the dispute at the International Court of Justice

The Belize–Guatemala border is a 266-kilometre-long (165 miles) line close to the 89th meridian west, which separates the west of Belize's territory from Guatemala. The border has been disputed by Guatemala since its independence in the 19th century. Guatemala's claim stems from a pre-independence 1786 Convention, which places a vague historic boundary in the Sibun River, north of the current border.

Guatemala recognised Belize's independence in the early 1990s, but in 1999, it shifted its stance back to inheriting claims from the Spanish Empire and the Federal Republic of Central America. Guatemala and Belize both stationed troops at the border, with a one-kilometre "adjacency zone" drawn on either side of the 1859 treaty borders. In 2008, both countries made a pact to have simultaneous referendums to send the issue to the International Court of Justice. The referendums passed in both countries by May 2019.

Both countries are now settling the dispute at the International Court of Justice, with both having submitted their initial briefs to the organisation. The court is not expected to rule until 2025 at the earliest. The court's ruling is to be implemented by a bi-national commission, the composition of which is to be agreed upon within three months of the court's decision.

Guatemala and Belize have agreed to accept the court's decision on "any and all legal claims of Guatemala against Belize to land and insular territories." The dispute has rumbled on for centuries, stretching back to the dawn of the colonial era in the Americas. Guatemala recognised Belize's independence at the beginning of the 1990s but never accepted the borders and continues to claim about 11,000 square kilometres (4,250 square miles) of Belize, about half of its territory.

The border dispute has been quieter since Belize's independence, but there have been several notable incidents. In February 2000, a Belizean patrol shot and killed a Guatemalan in the Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve in Belize. In April 2016, Belizean forces fatally shot a 13/14-year-old Guatemalan teenager, resulting in a border standoff. In April 2019, three Guatemalan gunboats prevented the Belizean coast guard from patrolling the Sarstoon River on the border between the two countries.

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