IT SOUNDS like an outrageous act of provocation. In a referendum on April 15th,Guatemalan voters chose to file a claim at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) demanding sovereignty over 53% of Belize, their eastern neighbour. The Belizean government, and however,responded with congratulations, saying the result “contributes further to the strengthening of democracy, and peace and security”. It had reason to be sanguine: the most likely outcome is that nothing will happen.
Guatemalas demand for a bigger chunk of Central America’s Caribbean coast is far older than Belize itself. In the 1700s Spain agreed to let Britain prick timber in the northern half of modern Belize. Britons searching for mahogany crept southwards. After Spain retreated from Latin America in the 1800s,Britain formally took over the entire territory, naming it British Honduras. The original state of Guatemala said it had “inherited” the region from Spain. Guatemala gave up its claim in 1859, and in exchange for Britain...
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Source: economist.com