Hybrid wars of tartupaluk or the battle of whiskey with schnapps. Whiskey War: The Strangest War Ever

A tiny Arctic island is at the center of a row between Canada and Denmark. And, it seems, Russia also has its sights on it.

There's enough in the world territorial conflicts, which are on everyone's lips - and Taiwan, and Kosovo, and Crimea. But one battle is constantly eluding the public eye. This is largely due to who are the parties to the conflict.

Canada and Denmark are known for their commitment to peace and democracy - no one will suspect them of saber-rattling. Despite this, the territorial dispute between the countries has been going on for almost a century. In its center is a tiny piece of land, the island of Hans.

Alas, the confrontation is quite real - it has been poisoning bilateral relations for decades. The issue remains unresolved to this day. A war of words - and whiskey - for a tiny corner extreme north remains an obstacle in relations between the two countries. Due to the indefinite status of the island, the fate of the rest of the region forgotten by everyone has passed - politicians, military, international scientific teams periodically fly here.

Uncertain past

fishing village in Greenland near the island of Hans

Denmark gained control of Greenland in 1815. Since then, the country has maintained a significant presence in the Arctic region. British and American interests here were identified after the US bought Alaska in 1867, and Canada gained independence. Anglo-American efforts to explore and map the region relied heavily on the Inuit and Danish settlers in Greenland. Indeed, the island is named after Hans Hendrik, a Greenland traveler, translator and participant in a number of American-British Arctic expeditions of 1853-1876.

The Arctic territories went to Canada in 1880 quite unexpectedly - Great Britain transferred the rights to the British Arctic Territory (assigned to the kingdom back in the 16th century by the discoverer Martin Frobisher). This was done to prevent American claims based on the Monroe Doctrine, which proclaimed continental solidarity ("Say 'No' to European ownership in North America!"). Given the imperfection of the mapping methodology and the difficulties inherent in the development of the Arctic, Hans Island was not explicitly included in the transfer of rights.

In the 1920s, Danish researchers were finally able to accurately describe the location of the island. The area of the island is only 1.3 km². It is uninhabited, there are no trees on it and there is practically no soil. The disputed piece of land is so far from civilization that the nearest locality- Alert, Nunavut, - is located 198 kilometers to the north.

Hans Island is almost no different from the thousands of other barren islands in the region. Therefore, quite rightly, the question arises: what, in fact, is the problem?

The reason why the island of Hans has become a stumbling block in international relations lies in its location. By the will of fate, the island ended up at a point where geography collides with international law. Namely, Hans Island is located exactly in the middle of the Nares Strait, 35 kilometers wide, separating Greenland and the Canadian province of Nunavut. According to international law, the boundary of territorial waters is 12 miles (22.2 kilometers) from the coast. Consequently, Hans Island falls into both Canadian and Danish territorial waters. Hence the claims of both sides.

Hans Island is located in the middle of the Kennedy Channel between Ellesmere Island (Canada) and Greenland (Denmark)

After the mapping of the region by Danish scientists and pressure from Copenhagen, the question of the status disputed territory was raised at the Permanent Court of International Justice (PPJ). In 1933, a decision was made in favor of Denmark. However, due to the remoteness of the island and the subsequent collapse of the League of Nations (of which the PPMP was the judicial body), the decision of the chamber could not resolve all the contradictions. In addition, after the Second World War, the League of Nations and the PPMP were abolished - they were replaced by the United Nations and the International Court of Justice. Therefore, the decision of the non-existent court of 80 years ago has no legal force today.

After the 1930s, Hans Island fell into oblivion for several decades, while Canada and Denmark dealt with pressing issues. However, in the early 1970s, the debate flared up with new force. In 1972-1973, Canada and Denmark agreed to demarcate maritime boundaries in the Arctic. Both countries recognized each other's claims to the continental shelf - one of the largest agreements of its kind in history. Despite the favorable outcome of the negotiations, the status of Hans Island remained uncertain. The sea border approached the island from the north and south, but there was no border on the island itself.

New millennium, old dispute

Danish and Canadian flags have changed over the island several times over the past 10 years.

Despite a lull after 1973, the Hans Island problem escalated again in 2004. Then the official opposition of the Canadian Parliament used the island as an excuse to increase defense expenses. Ottawa's statement provoked a furious reaction from Denmark, whose foreign minister demanded clarification from the Canadian ambassador.

Relations escalated after Canadian troops landed on the island on July 13, 2005, erected an inuksuk (stone sculpture) and raised National flag. The following week, Canadian Defense Minister Bill Graham visited the island. Denmark filed a protest declaring Hans Island "part of Danish territory" and filed a complaint against "an uncoordinated visit by a Canadian minister".

Fortunately, despite the tense rhetoric, both sides retain a sense of humor. Danish and Canadian expeditions not only hoist their own and dismantle the flags and monuments of the opposite side, but also exchange gifts. The Whiskey War began in 1984 when the Danish Minister for Greenland Affairs visited the island and left a bottle of schnapps on it with the sign "Welcome to Danish soil!".

Department head international law Danish Foreign Minister Peter Taxo Jensen writes:

“The Danish military always leaves a bottle of schnapps on the island. Canadians, for their part, also keep up the fun tradition - after them we find a bottle of whiskey and a sign "Welcome to Canada!"

Common Threat

"Russian submarine K-144" Tula "at the naval base in Gadzhiyevo, Murmansk region»

IN last years The Danish-Canadian partnership in the Arctic is growing despite the uncertain status of Hans Island. On May 4, 2008, an international team of scientists placed an automatic weather station on the island. In 2012, Canada and Denmark completed negotiations on oil exploration and fishing rights in the Baffin Sea. However, the area around the island was not affected. Then Canada made a proposal to divide the island in half, but it was not supported by the Danes.

Against the backdrop of improved bilateral relations, Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird met with his Danish counterpart Martin Leidgaard on 27 May 2014 to discuss the fate of Hans Island. In recent years, the attention of Denmark and Canada has shifted from the territorial dispute to increased Russian activity in the region. Russia's capabilities in the Arctic are many times greater than the potential of both countries - Moscow has at its disposal an entire Arctic fleet, including several nuclear-powered icebreakers. Besides, in Lately increased the number of flights of Russian military aircraft near airspace two countries.

Denmark and Canada are members of NATO, so the likelihood of a military conflict between them is close to zero. Of concern to both countries is Russia's active and assertive stance to capitalize on the Arctic's fish-rich waters and the region's abundance of minerals. The common threat leads to the strengthening of bilateral ties between Canada and Denmark and contributes to the speedy resolution of the territorial issue, because both countries will sooner or later have to compete with Russia.

International territorial disputes can be a very terrible thing, especially when they are fought with the utmost bitterness, relying on the strength of the army. But the situation in Canada and Denmark is completely different. Their way of challenging ownership of desert island in the Arctic is better suited for a dinner party than a battlefield: it all comes down to the phrase - "Bring your own alcohol!".

The tiny island of Hans, which is located in the middle of the Nares Strait that separates Greenland and the Canadian province of Nunavut, has become a stumbling block in relations between Canada and Denmark, which for many years cannot determine the status of this piece of land. uninhabited island area 1.3 square kilometers, on which there is practically no soil and no trees grow, regularly changes flags.

The island falls into the territorial waters of both states, so it is very difficult to determine its ownership.

In 1933, a meeting of the Permanent Court of International Justice (a judicial body of the League of Nations) put an end to the dispute, as a result of which the island was ceded to Denmark. However, after the collapse of the League of Nations, this decision lost its force and the countries again began to argue about the status of the island.

In the 70s, Canada and Denmark recognized mutual claims to the island, drew maritime border, but that was the end of it.

Relations escalated after Canadian troops landed on the island on July 13, 2005, erected an inuksuk (stone sculpture) and raised the national flag. The following week, Canadian Defense Minister Bill Graham visited the island. Denmark filed a protest declaring Hans Island "part of Danish territory" and filed a complaint against "an uncoordinated visit by a Canadian minister".

Canadians, for their part, also support a fun tradition - after them, the Danes find a bottle of whiskey and a sign "Welcome to Canada!" Because of this unusual tradition, the conflict was called the "Whiskey War".

In the middle of the Nares Strait, which separates Greenland and the Canadian province of Nunavut, Hans Island rises. The area of the island is only 1.3 square kilometers, it is uninhabited, there are no trees and there is practically no soil. It would seem, well, let him rise to himself, to whom he, in fact, surrendered.

But no, this island has been the site of an international conflict for almost half a century. In practice, it looks like this. Once every few months, Canadian naval troops land on the island of Hans, they lower the flag of Denmark, hang their own and leave a bottle of whiskey. Then the Danes appear, repeat the procedure, take the whiskey and leave their bottle. Therefore, this strange conflict was dubbed the whiskey war.

The exact location of Hans Island was described by researchers in the 20s of the last century. It turned out that it is located strictly in the middle of the Nares Strait, 35 kilometers wide. Which creates an interesting precedent in terms of international law. According to the legislation, the boundary of territorial waters runs 12 miles (22.2 kilometers) from the coast. Consequently, the island of Hans falls into both Canadian and Danish (Greenland belongs to Denmark) territorial waters.

Hans Island

In 1933, the issue was raised at a meeting of the Permanent Court of International Justice (the judicial body of the League of Nations). As a result, the island was given to Denmark. However, due to the remoteness of the disputed territory and the subsequent collapse of the League of Nations, this decision soon lost both practical and legal force.

In the 70s, the two countries recognized each other's claims to the continental shelf and even drew a sea border approaching the island from the north and south, but they could not agree on the status of the island itself. However, due to the presence of more pressing foreign policy issues, both sides for a long time forgot about the existence of the dispute.

Until 2004, the Canadian Parliament used the Hans Island conflict as an excuse to increase defense spending. Canadian troops arrived on the poor island, erected a stone sculpture and raised a flag. That caused a storm of indignation on the Danish side. Since then, the debate has not abated. Expeditions from both countries alternately dismantle enemy flags and monuments and build their own. But at the same time they do not lose their sense of humor and leave gifts.

“The Danish military always leaves a bottle of schnapps on the island. Canadians, for their part, also support the fun tradition - after them we find a bottle of whiskey and a sign “Welcome to Canada!”, - writes Peter Taxo Jensen, head of the international law department of the Danish Foreign Ministry.