Chile recalled its ambassador to Peru Tuesday over a border dispute involving a tiny piece of territory claimed by both countries, the latest flare-up in diplomatic tensions between the neighbours. "I'm here for consultations," Ambassador Roberto Ibarra told newspaper El Mercurio in Santiago. "These disputes over the border must be handled very carefully."
The spat flared up when the Peruvian Congress passed a bill creating the District of La Yarada-Los Palos in the southern region of Tacna, which includes some four hectares (10 acres) of land claimed by Chile. The two neighbours have a history of rocky relations, including a war in the late 19th century and a dispute over their maritime border that was resolved last year by the International Court of Justice in The Hague.