Why did Spain continue to claim sovereignty over Belize during the British settlement period?

Spain maintained its claim of sovereignty over the area now known as Belize because it viewed the British settlers as interlopers on Spanish territory.12

During the mid-17th century, British buccaneers and logwood cutters began settling on the coast, which Spain considered part of its domain. While Spain eventually signed treaties in 1763, 1783, and 1786 that granted British subjects the privilege of exploiting resources like logwood and mahogany, these agreements were strictly limited to specific, poorly surveyed territories.12

Crucially, these treaties did not grant Britain ownership; instead, they reinforced that Spain retained formal sovereignty over the region. Consequently, Britain referred to the area as a "settlement" rather than a formal colony, and Spain prohibited the settlers from establishing a formal government structure. It was not until the British successfully repelled a final Spanish attempt to remove them by force in 1798 that the settlement began to function as a colony in all but name, eventually leading to its formal status as British Honduras in 1862.12