OTTAWA-
An agreement has been reached to resolve a dispute with Denmark over a 1.3-square-kilometer island in the Arctic and is expected to be signed today, according to a government minister.
Northern Affairs Minister Dan Vandal confirmed on Monday that there will be an “official signing” of the Hans Island agreement on Tuesday.
The barren rock has been the subject of decades of diplomatic disputes between the two nations, as it lies in the territorial waters of both.
The agreement is expected to split the uninhabited island between Ellesmere Island, Nunavut, and Greenland, a Danish autonomous territory.
Vandal, speaking to reporters on Monday, said he was “waiting” for the agreement to be signed and would attend the ceremony.
He said that “the discussions have been going on for a long time” and “the important part is that the agreement has been made and we will have the signing tomorrow”.
“I think it’s very positive considering our global situation,” he said.
The deal is likely to mean that Canada, for the first time, shares a land border with Denmark.
The dispute over the small island has provoked a kind push since the 1980s between Canada and Denmark over which country is entitled to it.
In 1984, Canada planted a flag on the island and left a bottle of Canadian whiskey.
Later that year, Denmark’s Greenlandic Minister visited by helicopter, planting a Danish flag. He also left a bottle of aquavit, a Danish spirit, at the base of the flagpole and is said to have left a note saying “welcome to the Danish island”.
In 1988, a Danish patrol boat arrived from the Arctic Ocean and built a cairn with a Danish flag and flagpole on the island.
Then, in 2001, Canadian geologists who mapped the north of Ellesmere Island flew there by helicopter.
In 2005, the Minister of Defense of Canada, Bill Graham, went for a walk on Hans Island in a symbolic move. A week before setting foot on it, the Canadian Forces placed a Canadian flag and plaque on the island, sparking a protest from Denmark, which called on the Canadian ambassador.
In 2005, both countries agreed to reopen negotiations on the island with former Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen saying it was “time to stop the flag war”.
Both countries agreed, if they could not reach an agreement, to refer it to the International Court of Justice in The Hague for resolution.
The island is called Tartupaluk in Inuktitut and Greenlandic, and has been part of Inuit hunting grounds for centuries.
Denmark and Canada are allies of NATO and both are members of the Arctic Council. Recently, the two nations have cooperated closely with the war in Ukraine, even in aid programs for women and girls fleeing the conflict.
A Foreign Ministry spokesman, Joly, declined to comment.
But Canadian Fisheries, Oceans and Coast Guard Minister Joyce Murray said the talks were “an indication of the strong partnership and friendship we have with Denmark”.
Conservative Foreign Minister Michael Chong said the deal was “a demonstration of how countries that are prominent members of our international system can work together to resolve disputes around international borders.”
“Few things are more sacrosanct to maintain international order than to make sure we respect the international borders of others,” Chong said.
NPD Foreign Minister Heather McPherson told reporters Monday that the deal is a sign of greater international cooperation in Arctic affairs.
“Countries bordering the Arctic have an obligation to work together and this is just one of those indications that we are doing just that,” he said.
He joked that the deal could mean that Canada could qualify to compete in the Eurovision Song Contest.
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on June 14, 2022