UN court redraws Peru-Chile border

27 January 2014 Last updated at 18:06 GMT

Peru-Chile border redrawn by UN court at The Hague

Chilean fishermen could lose out the most from the ruling

The United Nations' highest court has redrawn the maritime boundary between Peru and Chile after an acrimonious dispute between the two neighbours.

Judges at The Hague awarded Peru parts of the Pacific Ocean but kept rich fishing grounds in Chilean hands.

At stake were 38,000 square kilometres (14,670 square miles) of ocean and some of the world's richest fishing grounds.

In 2008, Peru asked the International Court of Justice to rule on the matter, saying the border was not legally set.

It wanted the boundary to extend roughly southwest, perpendicular to the point where the two countries' land border meets the ocean.

But Chile insisted it should extend from the coast parallel to the equator.

It cited treaties agreed in 1952 and 1954 which it said had settled the maritime boundary on that basis.

Both countries have pledged to abide by The Hague ruling.

Peruvian ex-President Alan Garcia welcomed the court decision as positive for Peru, saying: "We have gained something and we are happy."

BBC Mundo's Paula Molina in Chile said analysts there see it as the end of tensions between the two neighbours, which have maintained close economic ties despite the long disagreement.

There was a nervous wait in Lima: "In the Hague we are all Peru" read a banner

Chileans demonstrated ahead of the ruling, who feared conflict could erupt again

Peru's fishing industry estimates that the disputed zone has an annual catch of 565m Peruvian nuevo soles ($200m; £121m), particularly of anchovies, which are used to make fishmeal.

Chile has promised financial help to its fishing industry in the event that the court decision affects it adversely.

Correspondents say that, with intense interest in the case in both countries, there was considerable national pride at stake too.

The BBC's Anna Holligan in The Hague says some Peruvians saw the ruling as a chance to win back national pride, and territory, after a humiliating defeat to Chile in the 19th century.

In the 1879-1883 War of the Pacific, Chile took mineral-rich land from two of its neighbours, Peru and Bolivia; the latter lost its only outlet to the sea, which it is determined to regain.