Canada & Denmark Now Share A Border In The Arctic & It Ends The 'Danish-Canadian Whisky War'
"Canada and Denmark are officially neighbours." 🇨🇦🥃🇩🇰
Mélanie Joly, Jeppe Kofod and Múte B. Egede shaking hands. Right: Joly and Kofod with the last bottles of the "Whisky War."
The long-lasting Canada-Denmark island dispute has finally been resolved, and the "whisky war" over Hans Island is now over!
Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Denmark Jeppe Kofod, Prime Minister of Greenland Múte B. Egede and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Industry and Trade of Greenland Vivian Motzfeldt put out a joint statement on June 14, 2022, about the historic agreement in the arctic.
"Canada and the Kingdom of Denmark, together with Greenland, celebrate the signing of a new boundary agreement resolving long-standing disputes over the maritime boundary in the Lincoln Sea and the sovereignty of Tartupaluk/Hans Island," they said.
"This agreement is a testament to our excellent relations, and it demonstrates our commitment to the rules-based international order and in maintaining our shared ambition of the Arctic as a region of low tension and cooperation," the officials continued.
Hans Island — aka Tartupaluk — is located in the arctic between Nunavut's Ellesmere Island and the northwestern part of Greenland, which is part of the Kingdom of Denmark.
Joly said in a tweet that "Canada and Denmark are officially neighbours" after ending the dispute over Hans Island, which creates "a clear border."
\u201cCanada and Denmark are officially neighbours.\n\n@JeppeKofod & I signed an agreement to end the dispute over Hans Island, creating a clear border. We will continue to work with Arctic partners on fighting climate change, defending sovereignty and advancing reconciliation.\u201d— M\u00e9lanie Joly (@M\u00e9lanie Joly) 1655244289
Kofod also posted about the agreement and shared a photo of him and Joly holding bottles of liquor to mark the occasion.
"The final bottles of the Danish-Canadian Whisky War," he said. "Here's to friendship, diplomacy and settling disputes peacefully."
There was also a note with the bottles that read, "One last bottle, exchanged in the spirit of friendship — to mark the end of an era and the beginning of a new!"
According to The Canadian Press, the dispute over the island has led to some back and forth since the 1980s, which has been nicknamed the "Whisky War."
In 1984, Canada planted a flag on the island and left a bottle of Canadian whisky. Later that year, an official from Denmark visited and planted a Danish flag, along with a bottle of aquavit, a Danish spirit.
In 1988, a Danish Arctic Ocean patrol ship went to the island and built a stack of stones with a flagpole and the Danish flag. In 2005, Canadian Forces placed a Canadian flag and plaque on the island.
Now, in 2022, the two countries are sharing Hans Island and have an official land border between them!