ABSTRACT
The Central American isthmus (including Belize and Panama) is crossed by ten national borders with a total length of approximately 3,250 km, 25 per cent longer than the border between the United States and Mexico, and more than twice the length of the boundary between Colombia and Venezuela. At the same time, these borders cut across regions of intense economic and social activity, which in many cases have been subject to prolonged geopolitical disputes and in certain cases the setting for recurrent armed conflicts.
