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A6 WORLD NEWS
Wednesday 25 september 2024
U.S. company accuses Mexico of expropriating its property on the

Caribbean coast

MEXICO CITY (AP) — An the company said in a state-
American quarry company ment.
said Tuesday the Mexican Instead, the company al-
government carried out a leged that some other
de-facto expropriation of its quarries in the area have
properties on Mexico's Carib- been operating unlawfully.
bean coast. "Unlike other quarrying sites
Mexico's Interior Department that have been operat-
issued a decree late Monday ing unlawfully to supply the
declaring the firm's seaport Mayan Train, our operations
and quarries to be a natu- were duly permitted," the
ral protected area, in effect company said.
prohibiting the company's The Mayan Train is a pet
activities on its own land. project of López Obrador to
President Andrés Manuel build a tourist train around
López Obrador had previ- the Yucatan peninsula. Ac-
ously threatened to expro- tivists, cave divers and ar-
priate the property and later cheologist say the project
offered to buy it for about has damaged the caves,
$385 million, saying at the which hold some of the old-
time he wanted to turn it into est human remains in North
a tourist attraction. Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador meets with his security cabinet at the National America.
Place in Mexico City, Aug. 2, 2024.
Alabama-based Vulcan Associated Press López Obrador has said in
Materials said in a statement the past that the most attrac-
Tuesday that the move vio- The decree published in to build a tourist train line not town of Playa del Carmen, tive part of the property was
lates the U.S.-Mexico-Can- the official gazette shows a far from the stone quarries. at $1.9 billion. the company's freight ship-
ada free trade agreement. strangely patterned nature The company, which was al- The Mexican president has ping dock — the only deep
It said the measure formed reserve that follows exactly ready involved in a dispute in the past threatened to port on the coast's mainland
part of "a series of threats some of the company's prop- resolution panel complaint expropriate the extensive — which he previously said
and actions by the current erty lines. against the Mexican govern- property, claiming the pits he wanted to turn into a
administration against our While the decree states the ment, said Tuesday it would the company has dug to dock for cruise ships.
operations. purpose of the park is to use "all available legal chan- extract crushed limestone López Obrador has also said
"The expropriation of land protect local animal and nels" to fight the new decree. have damaged the fragile he wants to use the flooded
and the seaport belonging plant species, in fact the In June the American com- system of underground rivers pits that the company dug
to our company is another seaport and stone quarries pany rejected the Mexican and caves in the area. out of hundreds of acres of
escalation and another vio- are very disturbed areas, do president's buy-out offer, say- But Vulcan Materials re- the limestone soil as "swim-
lation of Mexico's obligations not much resemble a nature ing it "substantially underval- jected the charge at that ming pools" or an "ecotour-
under trade agreements," reserve and would add little ues our assets." time. "Our operations have ism" area that would be op-
the statement said. "This il- to that effort. In papers filed on the case not adversely affected un- erated as a concession by a
legal measure will have a Moreover, the decree comes in an international arbitra- derground caves, cenotes private operator.
long-term paralyzing effect after López Obrador's admin- tion panel, Vulcan Materials or archaeological sites. In However, the huge quarry
on trade and investment re- istration cut down tens of valued the almost 6,000-acre fact, we have mapped, pits are inhabited by croco-
lations between Mexico and thousands of trees in a broad (2,400-hectare) property, lo- protected and preserved diles, which are a protected
the United States." swath through native jungle cated just south of the resort these valuable resources," species in Mexico.q

U.S. Navy replenishment ship operating in Mideast was damaged

after refueling warships, officials say

was under investigation, of- the Lincoln receiving sup- ing early Tuesday after im-
ficials said Tuesday. plies from the Big Horn, ages posted to a website
The USNS Big Horn was dam- while another on Sept. 11 tracking shipping called
aged after it resupplied the showed the Big Horn along- Captain showed flooding
USS Abraham Lincoln air- side the Lincoln. The Lincoln purportedly on board the
craft carrier strike group. is patrolling the Arabian Henry J. Kaiser-class fleet re-
It remained in the region Sea. plenishment oiler. The web-
amid heightened tensions The official said the Big site described the Big Horn
over the Israel-Hamas war Horn's crew was safe and as having "ran aground ...
and Israel's ongoing strikes there was no sign of an oil and partially flooded off
targeting Hezbollah in Leb- leak from the vessel. the coast of Oman."
anon. Another U.S. official, who Though the Lincoln is pow-
This handout photo from the U.S. Navy shows the Henry J. Kaiser- A U.S. Navy official, speak- spoke on condition of ano- ered by a nuclear reactor,
class fleet replenishment oiler USNS Big Horn sailing alongside ing on condition of ano- nymity for the same reason, its strike group has vessels
the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln on Sept. 11, 2024, at an nymity to discuss matters said the vessel was being powered by fossil fuel that
undisclosed location at sea in the Middle East.
Associated Press yet to be made public, supported by private tug- need to be resupplied at
declined to elaborate on boats to head into a port sea. The aircraft aboard
By JON GAMBRELL and ates (AP) — A U.S. Navy re- where the damage took and an assessment of the the Lincoln also need jet
TARA COPP plenishment ship operating place. A photo released by damage was still ongoing. fuel. The Big Horn and other
Associated Press in the Middle East sustained the U.S. military dated Sept. Rumors about the Big Horn's ships like it also provide oth-
DUBAI, United Arab Emir- damage and the cause 5 showed sailors aboard condition began circulat- er supplies. q