| Ecuadorian–Peruvian War | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theEcuadorian–Peruvian Conflicts | |||||||||
 Clockwise from top: Peruvian plane escorting a ship · Peruvian soldiers holding a position · Bombing of Arenillas · Ecuadorian border outpost captured · View ofEl Oro · Signing of the peace treaty | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
 Peru |  Ecuador | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
| Manuel PradoEloy G. UretaMarciano Ramirez[1][2] | Carlos Alberto Arroyo Luis Rodríguez | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| 5 July 1941: 9,000 soldiers 11 tanks 24 guns(from theAgrupamiento del Norte) Total: 10,000 Peruvian soldiers | In Amazonia: 5,300 8 guns In Quito: 12,000 Total: 17,300 Ecuadorian soldiers | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| 310 killed & wounded | 3,000+ killed & wounded[3] | ||||||||
TheSecond Ecuadorian–Peruvian War, usually called simply theEcuadorian–Peruvian War, and known locally as theWar of '41 (Spanish:Guerra del 41), was aSouth American border war fought between 5–31 July 1941. It was the first of three military conflicts betweenEcuador andPeru during the 20th century.[4]
During the war, Peruoccupied the western Ecuadorianprovince of El Oro and parts of the Andeanprovince of Loja. Although the war took place duringWorld War II, it is unrelated to that conflict, as neither country was supported by either theAllies or theAxis.[a]
A ceasefire agreement between the two countries came into effect on 31 July 1941. Both countries signed theRio Protocol on 29 January 1942, and Peruvian forces subsequently withdrew. Enmity over the territorial dispute continued after 1942, and the border disputes were not entirely resolved until theCenepa War of 1995 and the signing of theBrasilia Presidential Act agreement in October 1998.[5]
The territorial dispute between Ecuador and Peru dated from before Ecuador's independence, as part of a broader dispute between what was thenGran Colombia and Peru. It revolved around whether Ecuador's territory extended beyond theAndes mountain range to theMarañon (Amazon) river, including the Amazonian basin.
The lack of resolution of the dispute, despite several attempts by both parties, led to several conflicting treaties being signed between different parties to the conflict, includingColombia andBrazil, and led to war on several occasions. The first of these armed conflicts took place in 1828, when Peru fought against Gran Colombia in theGran Colombia–Peru War.[6] After the dissolution of Gran Colombia, the conflict resumed withEcuador, with skirmishes taking place often and thefirst Ecuadorian–Peruvian War taking place between Ecuador and Peru from 1857 to 1860.[7]
The dispute was again brought into the spotlight after the signing of theSalomón–Lozano Treaty in March 1922 by the governments of Colombia and Peru, which at that time was ruled byAugusto B. Leguía. The treaty, which was kept secret, set the boundary between Peru and Colombia as thePutumayo River, with the exception of a small strip of land controlled by the city ofLeticia that would connect Colombia to the main flow of theAmazon River. With that, Colombia effectively recognized Peruvian control of the rest of the disputed region south of the Putumayo River.[8]
Following the coup d'état against Leguía by troops under the command ofLuis Miguel Sánchez Cerro, the treaty was made public and caused much anger among the Peruvian population, which perceived that the treaty awarded Colombia a section of Peruvian territory. This dispute over the Amazon region controlled byLeticia would eventually lead to ashort war between Colombia and Peru from 1932 to 1933. The conflict over Leticia, which was populated by both Peruvian and Colombian colonists, was resolved after Sanchez Cerro was assassinated and the new Peruvian presidentÓscar R. Benavides accepted the1934 Rio Protocol which upheld the Salomón–Lozano Treaty and finally put an end to the border disputes between Colombia and Peru.
The Salomón–Lozano Treaty was unpopular in Ecuador as well, which found itself surrounded on the east by Peru, which claimed the territory as an integral part of its republic. Further adding to Ecuador's problems, the Colombian government now also recognized Peru's territorial aspirations as legitimate, and had nominally granted to Peru an area inSucumbíos which had been claimed by Ecuador.[9][10][11]
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An agreement was signed in 1936 which recognized territories inde facto possession by each country. The resulting border was known as the 1936status quo border line.[6]
However, by 1938 both nations were again initiating minor border skirmishes.[12] That same year, the entire Ecuadorian Cabinet, which was composed of high-ranking army officers who served as advisors for GeneralAlberto Enríquez Gallo (who had taken charge of government after a militarycoup d'état), resigned from government in order to take command of theEcuadorian Army. Meanwhile, inQuito, there were public demonstrations of people chanting "Down With Peru! Long Live Ecuador!".[13]
Peru's response to the events taking place in Ecuador was provided by foreign ministerCarlos Concha Cárdenas, who stated, "In Peru we have not yet lost our heads. Our country is in a process of prosperous development and the Government heads would have to be completely mad to think of war."[13] Peru at that time was undergoing major changes, with the social reforms begun by presidentAugusto B. Leguia (which he claimed were aimed at improving roads, sanitation, and industrial development, and promoting the general welfare of Peru's indigenous population) being continued by President GeneralOscar Benavides. Peru's government claimed to be attempting to run on a balanced budget, but Peru still held a large debt in spite of its positive foreign trade.[13] However, despite this, Peru began to mobilize its troops to the Ecuador border in response to deployment of Ecuadorian troops in the disputed zone.[13]
On 11 January 1941, alleging that Ecuador had been carrying out incursions into, and even occupations of, the Peruvian territory ofZarumilla, the Peruvian president,Manuel Prado, ordered the formation of theNorthern Army Detachment (Spanish:Agrupamiento del Norte), a military unit in charge of the Northern Operational Theatre.[2]
According to the testimony of Col. Luis Rodríguez,[14] the Ecuadorian forces at the disposal of the Army Border Command in El Oro (Lieutenant Colonel Octavio A. Ochoa) after the incidents of 5 and 6 July were as follows:
As a result of the rising tensions on the border during 1939 and 1940, the Peruvian President Manuel Prado authorised in December 1940 the creation of theAgrupamiento del Norte (Northern Army Detachment). By July 1941, this unit was ready to begin active military operations.
Order of Battle,Agrupamiento del Norte, July 1941
Figures for total strength of theAgrupamiento del Norte at the beginning of offensive operations have been put at 11,500 to 13,000 men.
The first shots of the conflict were fired on July 5, 1941; the parties disagree about who fired the first shot. According to Ecuadorian Colonel Luis A. Rodríguez (the commander of the Ecuadorian forces defending the province of El Oro during the war), a group of Peruvian civilians, including policemen, crossed theZarumilla River onto Ecuadorian soil. Rodríguez claimed that the Peruvian policemen opened fire on an Ecuadorian border patrol they spotted, killing one soldier. This was followed by the widespread exchange of fire between troops on the opposing banks of the Zarumilla, while two Ecuadorian officers sent to Aguas Verdes to speak with the Peruvian local commanding officer were rebuffed by the Peruvian authorities.[15] According to Peruvian accounts,Ecuadorian Army soldiers from the garrison ofHuaquillas (a town on the bank of the Zarumilla River, which then served as thestatus quo line at the western end of the Ecuadorian-Peruvian border), crossed into the Peruvian border post at Aguas Verdes, a town directly in front of Huaquillas, and opened fire on a PeruvianCivil Guard patrol. These troops were then followed by some 200 Ecuadorian armed men, which attacked the police station at Aguas Verdes for 30 minutes, to which the Peruvians reacted by sending an infantry company to Aguas Verdes and driving the Ecuadorians back across the Zarumilla.[16][17] In any event, fighting then spread to the entire border area along the Zarumilla River. By 6 July, Peru was conducting airstrikes against the Ecuadorian border posts along the river.[18][19][20] After the 5th, hostilities along the border continued. As a result, on the night of July 6, the senior commander of the Ecuadorian Army ordered the formation of the 5th Infantry Brigade in El Oro, under the command of Colonel Luis Rodríguez.[21]
The Peruvian offensive against Ecuador began on July 23, being carried out by the newly formedNorthern Army Detachment, headed by GeneralEloy G. Ureta with the purpose of pushing north intoEl Oro Province with the stated purpose of preventing more skirmishes along the disputed border.[2][22] On that day, the 41st Peruvian Squadron took off fromTumbes to fulfill a mission, under the command of Lieutenant Commander Antonio Alberti and made up of Lieutenants Fernando Paraud,José A. Quiñones and Manuel Rivera, aboard theirNorth American NA-50 orToritos fighter planes. The mission consisted of bombing the Ecuadorian post of Quebrada Seca, where they had concentrated the bulk of their anti-aircraft artillery and placed machine guns.[2]
According to Peruvian accounts, instead of parachuting to safety, Quiñones chose to sacrifice himself by crashing his damaged aircraft onto the Ecuadorian position, rendering the battery out of action. This version of events has been subsequently called into question by Ecuadorian military authorities, who have stated that there were no anti-aircraft guns in the area. The other planes that made up Squadron 41 continued with their mission and carried out a subsequent attack, returning to Tumbes.[23]
On July 24, a battle between Peruvian and Ecuadorian troops took place in Chacras, where the latter set up a resistance against the Peruvians. Due to constant Peruvian attacks, the defensive position eventually gave way and the post was overrun.[2][24]
On July 23, Peruvian aircraft carried outstrategic bombing of the port city. On the next day, aircraft returned to attack theAviso Atahualpa patrol boat, located at the docks of the city. This patrol boat drew bomb targeting away from valuable explosives located nearby which could have been attacked and ignited.[24]
On July 28, Peruvian submarinesBAP Islay (R-1) andBAP Casma (R-2) carried out a reconnaissance mission at themouth of the Jambelí Strait to search for the presence of artillery. The following day, cruisersCoronel Bolognesi andAlmirante Guise, during a patrol in front of the Jambelí Strait, bombed Punta Jambelí and Puerto Bolívar in preparation for the Peruvian advance on El Oro.[2]
The La Tina–Macará Front, extending from theQuebrada de Pilares to La Tina andChinchipe, was the responsibility of the Peruvian 8th Light Division, under the command of Colonel EP César A. Salazar Cartagena.[25]
| Battle of Macará | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| Peru | Ecuador | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| César Yánez Fernando del Risco | Raúl Espinoza | ||||||
| Units involved | |||||||
| Macará Detachment La Tina garrison | Macará Detachment | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 450 men | 60 men | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 3+ | 18+ dead 9+ missing | ||||||
According to Peruvian accounts,Macará had a large number of Peruvians, who saw themselves targeted by the Ecuadorian population. On July 25, news reached Peru that the Peruvian Consulate had been stoned and the Peruvian coat of arms dragged away. The Peruvian military authorities of La Tina protested and asked for an explanation, sending a sergeant and two soldiers to receive an answer after a two-hour ultimatum. They were greeted with a burst of machine-gun fire which killed the sergeant and wounded the other two soldiers.[2][25][24] According to Ecuador, the coat of arms fell off on its own and was moved by the consul himself. Following the event, news did reach Peru on the alleged events, but Ecuadorian authorities managed to communicate with the Peruvian consul, who offered to explain the events to the Peruvian side. However, hours later the consul instead abandoned the city along with his family. The Ecuadorians also disputed the reasoning behind the provocations by the Ecuadorian side, as it was well known that Peruvian troops had organized themselves near the city, and news had reached the area of the events taking place in El Oro province.[24]
Prior to the battle, the civilian population was evacuated, with some volunteers remaining to assist the Ecuadorian Army.[24] Fire was exchanged beginning at 2 p.m. Peruvian Commander César Yánez, head of the 7th Cavalry Regiment, supported by a company from the 19th Infantry Battalion and a battery from the 8th Artillery Group, crossed the river on July 28 and took Macará, encountering little opposition. Later, with the support of the company commanded by Captain Fernando del Risco, the Ecuadorian Army remnants in nearby Vado Limón were also defeated. The town was subsequently occupied by Peruvian forces, looted, and vacated two days later, when the Peruvian troops returned to their emplacements.[2][25]
| Battle of Cazaderos, Progreso and Huasimo | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| Peru | Ecuador | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Eliecer Nájera † Carlos Orbe † | |||||||
| Units involved | |||||||
| Huasimo: 1 Civil Guard group | |||||||
On July 29, the Ecuadorian border outposts of Cazaderos and Progreso were attacked by Peruvian troops, but the attacks were repelled.[24] At the nearby Ecuadorian Huasimo outpost, Peruvian and Ecuadorian troops also fought; the Ecuadorians had to retreat, leaving behind weapons and equipment.[2]
On July 25, in the Chacras sector, strong Peruvian contingents preceded by a tank surrounded a group of 25 soldiers commanded by Ecuadorian LieutenantCésar Edmundo Chiriboga González, who refused to surrender and fought to the death, along with his troops. In the place where he and his men died, the Peruvians put together a cross with a plaque that read, "Lieutenant César E. Chiriboga González and 25 soldiers, fallen on July 25, 1941, in the line of duty."[24]
The cross was found in the aftermath of the war, after Peruvian troops had retreated from southern Ecuador.[24] Due to his actions, Chiriboga was posthumously promoted to captain and declared a national hero of Ecuador.[26]
| Yaupi–Santiago offensive | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Location of the offensive | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| Peru | Ecuador | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Pedro Rivadeneyra | Alberto Mazón (POW)Hugo Garcés [es] † Salvador Veloz (POW) | ||||||
| Units involved | |||||||
| "Stte. Castro" garrison "Cahuide" outpost | "Ecuador" Battalion | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 100–300 men | 5–12 men(July 31) 11 men(August 1) 8 men(11 August) | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Unknown | 30 killed & captured | ||||||
Despite the agreed ceasefire, there were armed clashes in the Amazon area, with the Peruvian troops of the Jungle Division launching, between August 1 and 2, 1941, an offensive against the Ecuadorian garrisons located on the Yaupi and Santiago rivers.
According to Second LieutenantHugo Ortiz Garcés [es], whowould be killed the next day, the Ecuadorian Yaupi outpost and its Gazipum garrison was attacked from July 31 to August 1, 1941, by no less than 100 soldiers from the Peruvian Army, armed with eight machine guns.[27][24]
On August 2, 1941, in Gapizum, on the banks of the Santiago River, the Ecuadorian post of ten soldiers, commanded by 20-year-old Second LieutenantHugo Ortiz Garcés [es], was again attacked and, unlike theprevious day, overrun by Peruvian forces. Ortiz refused to surrender and was killed in action by the Peruvian soldiers, who buried him wrapped in the flag of the small Ecuadorian detachment in charge of guarding the Yaupi area. His remains were moved to Quito in 1943.[27][24]
The reinforcements requested by Ortiz Garcés arrived and began to approach the Yaupi River only a week later. The unit, commanded by Corporal Salvador León Veloz and made up of eight soldiers, began to approach the Yaupi River on August 11, when they were attacked by Peruvian soldiers. After half an hour of combat, the Ecuadorians were defeated, consolidating the Peruvian domain[clarification needed] in the Yaupi and Santiago rivers.
ThePeruvian Navy had an advantage over the ill-equippedEcuadorian Navy. The results favored Peru, such as in the successful blockade of Guayaquil.[27]
On July 25, the Peruvian destroyerAlmirante Villar set sail fromZorritos with the mission of entering Ecuadorian waters and carrying out patrol and reconnaissance tasks in the area. The Ecuadorian gunboatAbdón Calderón was spotted in the vicinity of the Jambelí channel. The Ecuadorian ship, which was in transit toGuayaquil, turned 180° as soon as it recognized the Peruvian ship, fleeing towardsPuerto Bolívar while firing. Admiral Villar did the same, maneuvering in circles avoiding getting too close to the coast due to its shallow depth. After 21 minutes of fire, the battle ended.[28][29]
The Peruvian Air Force was more numerous and technologically more advanced than its Ecuadorian counterpart. The core of Peruvian aviation was made up of a squadron of fiveNA-50 fighters, known asToritos, which were a version of the North American P-64 and had been delivered by theUnited States in May 1939. As in the case of armored vehicles, Ecuador practically lacked combat aircraft; at the beginning of hostilities, theEcuadorian Air Force had only sixCurtiss-Wright CW-19R Sparrow aircraft, and threeIMAM Ro.37 reconnaissance and attack biplanes that were in poor condition.[25] Peru carried out limited aerial bombing of the Ecuadorian towns of Huaquillas, Arenillas, Santa Rosa, and Machala.
On July 31, prior to the cease fire that was to be effective on that date, the Peruvians were ordered to capture the city of Puerto Bolívar, which was accomplished using paratroopers from the newly formedParatrooper Company of thePeruvian Air Force.[2] The use of said paratroopers was decisive in the capture of the city and was a surprise, since only a handful of countries had paratrooper units, such asGermany with theirFallschirmjäger, making Peru the first country in theWestern Hemisphere to deploy paratroopers, followed byArgentina in 1944.[30][31][32] The paratroopers were dropped from ItalianCaproni Ca.111 bomber-transports.[33]
On August 31, 1941, and facing a delicate political and national security situation, President of EcuadorCarlos Alberto Arroyo del Río decided to retain a considerable part of the Ecuadorian Army to protect the capital,Quito.[34] This military order was given due to intelligence reports coming from the intelligence services ofBrazil,Chile, and the United States, informing President Arroyo del Río and the Ecuadorian military high command that Peru was less than 48 hours from Guayaquil, leaving from Machala and Puerto Bolívar, the second port of Ecuador.
The Peruvian troops were less than 170 km from the Guayaquil metropolitan area. If Ecuador did not accept Peru's rights over the disputed territories, the Peruvian military intended to assault and capture the first port of Ecuador. Once Guayaquil was occupied, the Peruvian forces in the occupied part of the Ecuadorian highlands would leave from Loja, which is less than 600 km from the capital, and would occupy Quito, an operation that would take a maximum of 10 days, since the Ecuadorian armed forces had practically ceased to exist in September.[27]
By the end of August 1941, Peru occupied the coast: the provinces and cantons of El Oro, Puerto Bolívar and began the blockade of Guayaquil, the main commercial port and naval base of Ecuador.[24][35] In the mountains, the provinces and cantons of Loja and Zamora Chinchipe were occupied.[27]
In the jungle, the armed forces of Peru claimed Sucumbios, Napo and Pastaza in the regions that corresponded to the former Government of Quijos, which, according to the Royal Decree of July 15, 1802, passed to theViceroyalty of Peru and, according to the Peruvian version, Ecuador had occupied, taking advantage of the fact that Peru was facing Chile in theWar of the Pacific of 1879.[27] The territory ofSucumbíos had been nominally transferred to Peru in 1922 byColombia as a result of theSalomón–Lozano Treaty, but the act was not recognized by Ecuador.[9][10][11]
Faced with the threat to the Ecuadorian state, with Ecuadorian PresidentCarlos Alberto Arroyo del Río keeping a sizable part of the Army inQuito, Ecuador promptly requested a ceasefire, which went into effect on 31 July 1941.[2]
ThePeruvian occupation of Ecuador was formally established after the ceasefire of July 31, 1941, having existed since the Peruvian occupation began with the Zarumilla offensive on July 23. After the ceasefire, a civilian administration was established in the occupied province of El Oro by Peru.[2] A month later, on October 2, theTalara Accord (Spanish:Acuerdo de Talara) was signed, through which a bilateral ceasefire was put into place.[36] The treaty also established ademilitarized zone between both states, which would be under the Ecuadoran administration, and the observation of military representatives of the mediator countries that also signed the agreement: theUnited States,Brazil andArgentina.[37] Other countries involved in the mediation included theVatican, which had acted both directly between both countries and in conjunction with the other mediators, and to a lesser extent,Chile andMexico.[36][37] The topic ofPan-Americanism was raised, with countries such as Ecuador proclaiming their allegiance to the movement, and other countries, such asVichy France, criticizing it, arguing that it only served to increase American influence in the continent.[36]
By the time the ceasefire had been accepted, the cities bombarded by Peru includedSanta Rosa,Machala andPuerto Bolívar. Peruvian aircraft had reachedGuayaquil in at least two different occasions, but the squadron sent to the city limited itself to dropping propaganda leaflets, which were republished by Peruvian newspapersLa Industria andEl Tiempo.[36]
A fire began in Santa Rosa on 1 August 1941, which destroyed over 120 houses. Both sides blamed each other for the fire, with the Peruvian newspaperEl Comercio blaming the retreating Ecuadorian troops with a report that claimed that locals had heard an Ecuadorian commander ordering that the area was burned to a crisp.[36][38] The town was referred to as the "Lidice of America" by Italian writer Leonelly Castelly due to the scale of the destruction of the area being similar to that of theCzech town.[39]
The Peruvian administration immediately started efforts in order to exploit the newly acquired territories in southern Ecuador. A civil administration was established in order to provide a sense of normalcy to the Ecuadorian citizens that lived under occupation, which relieved the military from certain efforts. A large effort from the Northern Army Detachment during this period also went into repairing and maintaining infrastructure, such as highways and railroads, which would in turn be used to the advantage of the Peruvian Army. This effort was so intense that less than half a year later, the province had been transformed from its war-torn state.[2][36]
The Ecuadorian government also launched a diplomatic campaign, through which the Peruvian state was characterized as an expansionist state, attacking its neighbors by force and expanding its territories,[2] also intending to strengthen its ties toSpain, which had remained neutral during the conflict. Peru, on the other hand, disputed the expansionist claims, claiming that the country had no intention of acquiring new territory, intending the occupation to be temporary since the beginning.[36] During the conflict,Japan was accused of supplying Peru with weapons on more than one occasion, which increased theanti-Japanese sentiment in the country to the point where Japanese organizations complained to the Ecuadorian government, which released an official communiqué denouncing the accusation.[36]
The Cantonal Council of Machala, through which the city and El Oro province were administered, moved from Machala toGuayaquil, along with several refugees from El Oro in general. Some refugees travelled north as far asCuenca orQuito in lesser numbers. The number of refugees was reportedly so large that citizens were urged to take them in their homes, with their goods looted by Peruvian troops, and reportedly sent via plane, train or car toTumbes. The nearby town of Tendales was one of the points where refugees travelled, either to settle in there or to leave for Guayaquil or further north. As time went on, the numbers of refugees overwhelmed the town, which was unable to provide for such a large number of people.[36][40]
With a large number of people leaving, the city of Machala, which would serve as the headquarters for the Peruvian administration, was reportedly left virtually empty, as the majority of its inhabitants had left for the north.[40] Also prior to the evacuation, a general state of disorder had taken over due to a lack of administration, with both countries reporting looting by some Ecuadorian troops fleeing north.[36] Additionally, a resistance had been established by both Ecuadorian citizens and army members, through which acts of sabotage were carried out against the Peruvian occupying force.[2] These acts ranged from lesser acts to armed confrontations between both parties that resulted in deaths on several occasions.[2] These encounters were reportedly started by both sides up until the signing of the agreement that established the demilitarized zone on October 2.[36]
The Talara Agreement was signed on October 2, through which a bilateral ceasefire was agreed upon and enforced by both Ecuador and Peru.[36] The treaty also established ademilitarized zone between both states, which would be under the observation of military representatives of the mediator countries that also signed the agreement, and would later sign the Rio Protocol in 1942: theUnited States,Brazil andArgentina.[37]
The government of Ecuador, then led by Dr.Carlos Alberto Arroyo del Río, signed theRio de Janeiro Protocol on January 29, 1942, with which Ecuador officially renounced its claim to a sovereign outlet to theAmazon River, finally establishing most of its border with Peru.[2] As per the agreement, on February 12, 1942, Peruvian troops vacated the Ecuadorian province of El Oro.[40][41] During this time, theorense government-in-exile had made the prior preparations in order to reestablish its administration of the province as soon as possible, such as the immediate reestablishment of a police force in order to establish a security body in the area, as well as the return of the refugees that had abandoned the province for the north of the country. The exiled Cantonal Council held its first plenary Session on January 18, six days after the withdrawal of Peruvian troops from Ecuador.[40]
AfterJapan's attack on Pearl Harbor Peru cut off diplomatic relations with theAxis Powers, and aligned with theAllies.
The placement of the border markers along the definitive border line indicated by the Rio Protocol had not been completed when the Ecuadorians withdrew from the demarcation commissions in 1948; they argued that inconsistencies between the geographical realities and the instructions of the Protocol made it impossible to implement the Protocol until Peru agreed to negotiate a proper line in the affected area. Thus, some 78 km of the Ecuadorian-Peruvian border were left unmarked for the next fifty years, continuing to cause diplomatic conflict and military confrontations between the two countries.
Alerta en la frontera, a Peruvian propaganda film filmed during the war, went unreleased until 2014 due to the Rio de Janeiro Protocol.[42]
In 1960, Ecuadorian PresidentJosé María Velasco declared that theRio Protocol was void. According to the Velasco Administration, the treaty, having been signed under Peruvian military occupation of Ecuadorian soil, was illegal and contrary to Panamerican treaties that outlawed any treaty signed under the threat of force.
However, this proclamation made little international impact, and was not followed by meaningful action; Peru and four other countries continued to consider the treaty valid. Peruvian analysts have speculated that PresidentVelasco used thenullity thesis to gather political support with nationalist and populist rhetoric.
In 1981, the countries again clashed briefly in thePaquisha War. Only in the aftermath of theCenepa War of 1995 was the dispute finally settled. On 26 October 1998, representatives of Peru and Ecuador signed a definitive peace agreement: theBrasilia Presidential Act.
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain. Dennis M. Handicraft, ed. (1989).Ecuador: A Country Study.Federal Research Division. Reform, Chaos, and Debacle, 1925-44.29.I.1942: "Hoy a las 2 a. m. se Firmó el Acuerdo Ecuatoriano-Peruano: Las Fuerzas Peruanas Saldrán Dentro de 15 Días de Nuestros Territorios (Today at 2 a.m. the Ecuadorian–Peruvian Agreement was signed: Peruvian Troops will leave our territories in 15 days)"
