The International Court of Justice ruled [judgment, PDF] on Monday that landlocked Bolivia cannot force neighboring, coastal Chile to grant it access to a portion of the Pacific Ocean Chile presently controls.

“The Court is unable to conclude, on the basis of the material submitted to it, that Chile has the obligation to negotiate with Bolivia in order to reach an agreement granting Bolivia a fully sovereign access to the Pacific Ocean,” reads the judgement.

Chile and Bolivia have long contested access to the Pacific Ocean; Bolivia controlled a portion of coast until 1904, when Chile successfully annexed the territory. The day has since been commemorated each year by grieving Bolivians, and the nation has attempted to renegotiate water rights for over 100 years.

The ICJ first agreed [JURIST report] to hear this case in 2015 after both parties asserted that through the 1948 Pact of Bogotá [text], the ICJ had agreed to hear all cases regarding Pacific Ocean rights.

As part of his most recent bid to gain water rights, Bolivian President Evo Morales suggested giving Chile an equal portion of Bolivian territory in exchange for some coastline, but Chile rejected the offer. In a press release [text, in Spanish] on Monday afternoon, the government affirmed that “the seas and oceans are the common heritage of humanity and in their immensity can only be compared to the Bolivian desire to return to the sea.”

“Our demand can not and should not be considered as an unfriendly act but as the opportunity that allows us to rediscover ourselves,” said Morales. “We are neighbors and brothers with a common destiny.”