

US Warships In Costa Rican Waters Worries Nicaragua



The permit renewal application that the Costa Rican legislature has to give every six months for the eventual docking of US Navy ships, helicopters and personnel, as part of the Programa de Patrullaje Conjunto (Joint Patrol) which exists since 1999, has rattled the Nicaraguan military and press.

USS Doyle In Nicaragua, the La Prensa, said the Nicaraguan army was "cautious at the request of Costa Rica to the United States to send 46 warships, 42 helicopters and 4.000 troops to patrol the national coasts".



The caution follows a letter by Costa Rica's ministro de Seguridad P�blica, Jos� Mar�a Tijerino, to the secretary of the Legislature, legislator Mireya Zamora, to extend the permit for the "eventual docking of ships of the United States Navy, which are maintaining anti-drug operations jointly with the Costa Rican Coast Guard, for the period of January 1, 2011 to June 30, 2011".



Under the Joint Patrol agreement the US is required to solicit a permit extension every six months. The request process has been ongoing since the beginning of the joint patrol and though the number of ships requested seems high, US embassy officials in Costa Rica say the request is for "every possible" ship and crew that could be used in the operation.



Minister Tijerino assures that "there is no US military base in Costa Rica and that we are not expecting to send anyone other than the Fuerza P�blica (police) to protect the Colorado, Sarapiqui and San Carlos rivers, unlike what the Nicaraguan press has misinterpreted".



The minister explained that the list is of ships "that could dock and land in national ports during the next six months" and it is not a US military contingency requested by Costa Rica due to the Nicaragua conflict.



Last week the USS Doyle docked at the port in Golfito to take on fuel and supplies, spending up to us$3 million dollars in the small southern community, also took the opportunity to show off to a group of Costa Rican legislators, giving them a personal tour of the naval warship.



Some legislators have been calling for the US to apply, separately, for every ship and crew that enters Costa Rican waters. That move, according to US officials, would require additional staff at the US Embassy in San Jos� and additional paperwork, that would slow down the US response in its anti-drug fighting efforts.

