San Andrés, Providencia, and Santa Catalina form a Colombian archipelago sitting roughly 700 kilometers from the Colombian mainland but just 200 kilometers off the Nicaraguan coast — a geography that has fueled disputed sovereignty claims for decades. Colombia and Nicaragua signed no fewer than three treaties over the islands during the 20th century, and a 2012 ICJ ruling further redrew maritime boundaries, awarding Nicaragua significant Caribbean waters while confirming Colombian sovereignty over the islands themselves. This coin was issued three years after that ruling.
San Andrés, Providencia, and Santa Catalina form a Colombian archipelago sitting roughly 700 kilometers from the Colombian mainland but just 200 kilometers off the Nicaraguan coast — a geography that has fueled disputed sovereignty claims for decades. Colombia and Nicaragua signed no fewer than three treaties over the islands during the 20th century, and a 2012 ICJ ruling further redrew maritime boundaries, awarding Nicaragua significant Caribbean waters while confirming Colombian sovereignty over the islands themselves. This coin was issued three years after that ruling.