Loizaga – Cotegipe Treaty

The Loizaga – Cotegipe Treaty was a treaty of Peace and Borders signed in Asuncion on January 9, 1872, between Paraguay and the Empire of Brazil. It established the boundaries between the two countries following Paraguay’s defeat in the Paraguayan War.

The treaty was signed by Carlos Loizaga and João Mauricio de Wanderley, Baron of Cotegipe. With this treaty, Brazil gained all the territories north of the Apa River which it had claimed before the Paraguyan war, a total of 62325 sqkm. Ambiguity over the exact borderline between the two nations later led to dispute over the ownership of Guaíra Falls.

Despite its obligations under the Treaty of the Triple Alliance towards Argentina and Uruguay, Brazil concluded this treaty with Paraguay separately. In response Argentina occupied Villa Occidental, to enforce its claims in Gran Chaco.