The impact of the Ojinaga border dispute (1968-1970) on US-Mexican relations

Abstract

The research deals with the border dispute between the United States and Mexico in the Ojinaga region in the Mexican state of Chihuahua. It begins by reviewing the historical context, including the Mexican-American War and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848. The Mexican and American governments conducted numerous negotiations to resolve the disputes, but no final solutions were reached for some issues, including the Ojinaga region. Therefore, the United States made the Rio Grande River the dividing line between Mexico and American lands in that region. However, the change in the course of the Rio Grande River in 1969 as a result of floods, and the transfer of large areas of Mexican lands to the United States, led to the arousal of Mexican public opinion in that region. The research also discusses the role of the International Boundary and Water Commission and the bilateral negotiations between the two parties, until an agreement was reached to demarcate the border and divide the region between the two countries. Mexico obtained the largest part of the land, after signing a draft of the border treaty between the United States and Mexico in the Ojinaga region on November 23, 1970. The treaty stipulated the modification of the border In Ojinaga, based on the stable river course at that time, i.e. according to the 25% and 75% settlement, and the use of modern methods to stabilize the river course, and joint cooperation between the two countries to maintain border stability, as the United States of America was seeking through this policy to win other cases from Mexico, especially after Mexico's insistence on resorting to international arbitration in the case of the salinity problem of the Colorado River, which the residents of Mexicali in Mexico suffered from, and the United States of America's attempt to reduce the intensity of tensions between the two countries. He also highlighted the economic and social dimensions of the conflict, its impact on the local population, and the importance of resolving border disputes through peaceful and legal means.