This is described by some as “pseudo-confrontation”, by others as diplomatic follow-up thought. Now, however, the so-called “whiskey war”, which was never really a conflict, has finally been resolved with the official division of a small barren Arctic island between Canada and Denmark.
Located in the Kennedy Canal on the Nares Strait between the northwest coast of the semi-autonomous Danish territory of Greenland and the Canadian island of Elsmeer, the half-mile uninhabited island of Hans has no mineral resources or many other interests unless you are a visiting seabird.
Shaped like a muffin and surrounded by rocks, it has been an Inuit hunting ground for centuries. Most importantly, however, he was at the center of a long-running border dispute between Canada and Denmark – through the Greenlandic government – with Copenhagen claiming that geological evidence suggests the Hans Island is part of Greenland – a claim rejected by Ottawa.
Aerial view of Hans Island. Photo: Gallo Images / Getty Images
Canada and Denmark agreed in 1973 to establish a border across the Nares Strait, halfway between Greenland and Canada. But they failed to agree on which state would have sovereignty over the island of Hans, about 1,100 km (680 miles) south of the North Pole. In the end, they decided to resolve the issue of property later.
This has sparked largely well-intentioned advocacy between the two countries, including ads posted on Google promoting their claims and flag-raising stunts.
The reference to the Whiskey War came after the Danish Greenlandic Minister hoisted a Danish flag on the island in 1984, buried a bottle of Danish schnapps at the base of the flagpole and left a note reading: “Welcome to the Danish island” .
The Canadians then hoisted their own flag and left a bottle of Canadian brandy. Since then, the countries have raised their flags and left bottles of various spirits in motion.
In 2002, Nana Flensburg was part of a Danish military crew that stood on a cliff to perform a flag-raising ceremony. The Politiken newspaper quoted her on Tuesday as saying in her diary that “there are many bottles, cups, etc. among the stones in the caves. with documents informing about previous visits to the island ‘.
In the midst of the rivalry, both sides began buying Google ads to make demands after Denmark said it would send a letter of protest in connection with then-Canadian Defense Secretary Bill Graham’s visit in 2005.
Graham said Canada had always owned the island, prompting Denmark to respond: “Hans Island is our island.” Some Canadians, meanwhile, have proposed a boycott of Danish pastries in an echo of the way some Americans rejected “french fries” when France refused to join coalition forces in Iraq.
These frictions are now ending, with the two sides agreeing to share the small island with each other under an agreement to be signed later Tuesday.
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“This sends a clear signal that it is possible to resolve border disputes … in a pragmatic and peaceful way, where all countries become winners,” said Danish Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod. He said it was “an important signal now that there are many wars and unrest in the world”.
The agreement enters into force after the completion of the internal procedures of both parties. In Denmark, the parliament must first give its consent to the agreement.
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