Hans Island (Greenlandic/Inuktitut: Tartupaluk, Danish: Hans Ø, French: Île Hans) is a little uninhabited barren hillock with measurements of One.Iii km² (Zero.Phoebe mi²), situated at around in the centre of the Kennedy Channel of Nares Strait—the strait that separates Ellesmere Island from northern Greenland and connects Baffin Bay with the Lincoln Sea. Hans Island is a smallest of iii islands located in Kennedy Channel; the others come Franklin Island and Crozier Island.

A island is claimed by two Canada and Denmark. a dispute might transform into a test suit in sovereignty claims along the Northwest Passage, a region that can get other crucial whenever climate change opens it up to extra transport.

The name
A island is purportedly known as fallowing Hans Hendrik (sometimes known as Heindrich), whose native title is Suersaq. Hendrik was the Greenlandic arctic traveler & translator world health organization worked on the U.s. & British arctic expeditions of Elisha Kent Kane, Charles Francis Hall, Isaac Israel Hayes and George Strong Nares, from 1853 to 1876.

A isl& was probably known as someplace between 1871 and 1873 in the period of Charles Francis Hall's third Northward Pole expedition. A number one written information to the title, & indeed to the island inside the least, appears in Charles Henry Davis's book Narrative of the Northerly Polar expedition (1876), which occurs as story of Hall's third Northerly Pole expedition. In report 407 it suddenly appears, forgoing any former introduction, under a date August 13, 1872, "about noon, she was quite near Hans Island and west of it." (talking just about a ship Polaris). a map accompanying a book is in which the island mass produced its 1st cartographic appearance.

A list of several wharehouses therein region use changed or even altered when you took a go Centred years. For instance, a title of Nares Strait (known as when George Strong Nares), separating Ellesmere Isl& and Northern Greenland, was non in agreement between a Danish and American governments until 1964.

Short history

As much as a early 19th century, a northern front yard of Greenl& & Canada remained wholly undiscovered by Europeans, and so there is there are no principles all about this island prior to that instance. Inuit living in Northern Greenland or even Canada experienced probably crossed this region for centuries.

From either 1850 to 1880, a locality where Hans Isl& is placed was explored by Western and British expeditions. These expeditions were the response part due to the popular seek for the missing British explorer John Franklin, and part to research for the elusive Northwest Passage and/or reach a North Pole.

A Danish "Celebration Expedition" of 1920 to 1923 accurately mapped a whole vicinity of the Northern Greenland coast from either Cape York (Kap York) to Denmark Sound (Danmark fjord).

Inside 1933, a Permanent Court of International Justice declared the legal status of Greenland in favour Denmark. A status of Hans Island was non addressed. Notwithstanding, decades late, Denmark would claim that geologic grounds to believe pointed to Hans Isl& existence section of Greenland, and so that it belongs to Denmark by extension of the Court's opinion.

Within 1972, a team consisting of personnel from either the Canadian Hydrographic Service and Danish personnel, working in the Nares Strait determined the geographic co-ordinate for Hans Island. When you took negotiations between Canada & Denmark inside Northern nautical boundaries in 1973, Canada claimed that Hans Island was section of their territory. There is no agreement was reached between them governments on the issue.

Since a Sixties, many researchers keep close at h& been undertaken in the Nares Strait vicinity, including seismal, ice flow, mapping, archaeological and economic studies. American-depending Dome Petroleum Ltd. processed researchers within & in Hans Island in 1980 to 1983, to investigate a movement of ice people.

Recent events
1983 - Denmark sends fighter jets across Hans Island to re-affirm Danish sovereignty 1984 - Tom Høyem, Danish Minister for Greenland, chartered a whirlybird to the Island. 1988 - A Danish Arctic Ocean patrol cutter arrived at the island, builds a cairn and placed the flagpole and Danish flag on the island. 1995 - A Danish liaison officer & crew working at Thule Air Base flew in & located a second flagpole & flag. Late August 1997 - A Danish Arctic/Ocean patrol cutter tried to email a island, however was forced to reversal 241 kilometer from either a Island, owing to extreme ice. 2001 - Keith Dewing & Chris Harrison, geologists by having a Geological Survey of Canada who were mapping northern Ellesmere Island, flew by helicopter to the island. August 13, 2002 - The Danish review ship arrived & erected a recently cairn, flagpole & flag, searching for a 1988 flag missing & the 1995 flag around pieces, belike owing to weather. August 1, 2003 - The crew of the Danish frigate landed on a isl& and replaced the Danish flag once again. July 13 2005 - Canadian soldiers land on the Island, placing the traditional Inuit stone marker (Inukshuk) with the plaque & the Canadian flag. July 20, 2005 - As a symbolic move, American Defence Minister Bill Graham set foot on the island.[http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20050723.hans23/BNStory/National/] July 25, 2005 - the Danish government official announced that Denmark would issue a Letter of Protest to Canada. July 26, 2005 - Deputy premier of Greenland, Josef Motzfeldt, stated that a island got been occupied by Canada, stating that experts should determine which united states the island belongs to. [http://ekstrabladet.dk/VisArtikel.iasp?PageID=303659], [http://www.sikunews.com/art.html?artid=348&catid=6] July 28, 2005 - The Danish Ambassador to Canada publishes an article in the newspaper Ottawa Citizen on a Danish see on the Hans Island issue. [http://www.ambottawa.um.dk/en/menu/PressAndCulture/News/ArticleabouttheHansIslandissue.htm] August 4, 2005 - The Danish Arctic/Ocean patrol cutter has been sent from either Naval Station Grønnedal to Hans Island to assert Danish sovereignty. A cutter is potential to arrive around terzetto weeks instance. [http://www.dr.dk/nyheder/indland/article.jhtml?articleID=267507] August 8, 2005 - Danish newspapers report that Canada wishes to open negotiations regarding a new of Hans Island. A news was welcomed by Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen who stated that "It is time to stop the flag war. It has no place in a modern, international world. Countries like Denmark and Canada must be able to find a peaceful solution in a case such as this." [http://www.jp.dk/indland/artikel:aid=3191024/] August 16, 2005 - According to Danish Foreign Minister Per Stig Møller, Denmark and Canada keep around agreed to reopen negotiations on a new of Hans Island. Denmark might immediately start out geologic researchers in the area, & By the Stig Møller may meet his American counterpart Pierre Pettigrew in New York in the middle of September. Should it fail to email an agreement, each governments keep close at hand agreed to submit a dispute to the International Court of Justice in the Hague. The food and drug administration of Greenland got agreed to this course. On a Danish patrol cutter presently en route to Hans Island, a minister stated "I have instructed the ship to sail there, but they will not go ashore tearing down (the Canadian) flag and replacing it with a new one. It would be a somewhat childish (behaviour) between two NATO allies." [http://www.bt.dk/nyheder/artikel:aid=381220/] August 20, 2005 - Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister, Pierre Pettigrew, states that Canada's claim to the isl& has the firmly basis inside international law and may belike non prevent higher prior to a international court of justice. "Our sovereignty over the island has a very strong foundation," the minister says inside the telephone locate sustaining the Canadian Press journalist. [http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/1124451989435_49/?hub=Canada] September 19, 2005 - According to Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister, Piere Pettigrew, Canada & Denmark use agreed in a run to resolve a dispute above the island. Pettigrew & his Danish couterpart, By the Stig Møller, met around Future York in todays world. Pettigrew said them countries may function together "to put this issue behind us." Still Pettigrew reiterated that Canada has sovereignty all over a island. [http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/09/19/hans-island-20050919.html]

In dispute
A ownership of the isl& is disputed when these are claimed by each Canada and Denmark. It failed to settle a issue after borders were drawn between Canada & Greenland around 1973. A border is established in a border pact all about the Continental Shelf between Greenland and Canada, ratified per United Nations on December 17, 1973, and effective since March 13, 1974. At that instance, it was the hanker shelf boundary pact ever negotiated & will use at times been a number 1 ever continental shelf boundary developed by a computer program.

a food & drug administration of the Kingdom of Denmark & the food & drug administration of Canada, With decided to establish in the area between Greenland and the American Arctic Islands a dividing line beyond which neither Person exercising its rights under the Convention on the Continental Shelf of April/29/1958 may extend its sovereign rights for the purpose of exploration and exploitation of the natural resources of the continental shelf...

A accord names 127 points (latitude and longitude) from Davis Strait to the end of Robeson Channel, where Nares Strait diarrhea into Lincoln Sea, to draw geodesic lines between, to form the border. A pact doesn't, but, draw the line from either point 12Two (80° 49' 2 - 66° Twenty-nine' Nought) to point 123 (80° 49' 8 - 66° Xxvi' Triplet), the few feet away of 875 metres. Hans Island is placed in the centre of this vicinity.

Significance
a dispute all over Hans Island can transform into a test suit in sovereignty claims along the entire Northwest Passage and Arctic Sea. When Hans Island has little to there is no actual value, as a landmass, a waters associated using a island can keep close at hand value to two countries. Because of its location around the centre of Kennedy Channel, it may play the key role in determining control of the passage across Nares Strait.

A American Navy has once in a while utilized a dispute across Hans Island as an argument for investment all told-weather, ice-strengthened war ships, which Canada lacks. Denmark, then again, has an extended tradition of operating ice-strengthened patrol frigates in the Arctic.

Other significant is that a guide across Hans Island can produce legal precedent for Canada, which likewise has marine sovereignty conflicts in the Arctic by using the U.S. & Russia.

Introduction to the dispute in the news
Map showing the location of the Island in the Kennedy Channel. Close-up map of Nares Strait; Hans is the northernmost of the three islands visible in the strait.

Around 1984 Kenn Harper, a historiographer from either Iqaluit, Nunavut, wrote an article about Hans Island, which was published in the local newspaper Hainang^One, around Qaanaaq (Thule) in northward-american Greenland. This article was picked higher by the Danish newspaper around Copenhagen, and by CBC Radio in Canada, which gave Hans Island its first momentary publicity.

This article was sparked because of the risk encounter on the ice touching Resolute, Nunavut, in the Canadian Arctic in the fall of 1983. Based on data from Kenn Harper he met the human wearing a hat sustaining bold letters in the side of the hat, saying "HANS ISLAND, N.W.T.". This human was the man of science by owning Dome Petroleum who had good spent a summertime on the island doing ice the food and drug administration. Dome Rock oil did search in & as much as a island in the years 1980 to 1983.

Oil corporations build unreal islands in the sea in which to position their drill rig. Hans Island was apparently a hone setting to line 2 text such unreal islands nature and severity to withstand a inflict of existence hit by big ice floe of multi-season ice.

At the same time the Danish & American governments were inside the run of signing a cooperation agreement within relation to the Marine Environment in Nares Strait. A agreement was signed & put into inflict in August 26, 1983. (A accord was extended potentially farther inside 1991.)

a Agreement aims at getting farther bilateral cooperation inside respect of the protection of the marine environment of the waters fabrication between Canada & Greenl& & of its dwelling resourses, particularly by having respect to readiness measures as a contingency against pollution incidents ensuant from either either offshore hydrocarbon exploration or even exploitation (Wing A) and from transport activities (Annex B) that could affect the marine environment one waters.

One of the things besides discussed was a possibility of establishing a mutual arrangement for processing applications to conduct the food & drug administratiin on and around Hans Island. This was never signed, even so American John Munro, at that time minister for Northern Affairs and Development and Danish Tom Høyem, at that time Minister for Greenland, agreed, in most common interest, to avoiding acts that can prejudice new negotiations.

Nevertheless unknown to the politicians Dome Crude was already doing the food and drug administration on the island. Based on data from Kenn Harper, a American Department of External Affairs conducting these negotiations with a Danes may not potentially develop been caring that Dome Fossil oil was already doing the food and drug administration on the Island. Kenn Harper claims that within 1984, the senior official of Energy Mines & Resources, Canada, wrote him expression: "To my knowledge the Department of Energy, Mines & Resources did not confer with the Department of External Affairs over the use of the island by Dome Petroleum."

Whenever Kenn Harper’s article of 1984, mentioning Dome Rock oil & Hans Isl&, obtained its way to the Danish newspapers, these are non hard to look at how come Tom Høyem inside 1984 chartered the eggbeater from either Greenland and attend Hans Island. It can indeed use been something thus elementary as a misunderstanding & breach inside communications.

These are said that Tom Høyem planted a Danish flag on the Isl& and left a bit message saying "Velkommen til den danske ø" (English: welcome to the Danish Island). These are too said he left the bottle of cognac.

^{note1: Hainang newspaper, Qaanaaq - based on data from "Newspapers on microfilm", Twenty-fourth edition, 2004, Statsbiblioteket, Denmark – existed 1964-1982, and then it will use at times been known as different within 1984, or even it may become the different newspaper altogether.}

The dispute hits the news

Fallowing a dispute got received little attention for about 31 years, it suddenly come to popular attention across American click stories when you took late March 2004. Inside times, it spread to more newspapers worldwide. Shortly when Internet newsgroups, weblogs & forums began to run fresh threads & entries on the subject. Cases such as "Canada being invaded" & "Denmark massing troops on Canadian territory" may often become incurred.

A issue come to weak in March 25, 2004, when Adrian Humphreys of the American National Post newspaper wrote an article entitled, "Five-year plan to 'put footprints in the snow' and assert northern sovereignty". Humphreys processed a brief mention of the dispute all over Hans Isl&, and that the Danes got sent war vessel to the island.

When Canada wanted to assert sovereignty of its northern territories for a kind of reasons unrelated to this dispute, Hans Isl& before long became a focus of the debate, and wwhen presented as the independent understanding for this newly American policy.

the Arctic sea vicinity has yearn been a subject of dispute. In that matter, Canada, Denmark, Russia and Norway all share the most common interest because it regard area of the Arctic sewhen as "national waters". A United States and most European Union countries, on a other hand, officially regard the area when international waters.

Farther things in the American media led to the issue existence picked higher by international news organisation.

A American federal government's 2004 budget was introduced on March 23, 2004, two years prior to a issue gained far flung attention. It proposed minimum increases to outlay in national defence. A issue of Hans Island was raised in the Canadian Parliament by opposition foreign affairs critic Stockwell Day to highlight the government's failure to provide additional funding for the armed services.

The fresh article by Adrian Humphreys in March 30, 2004, also in the National Post, entitled, "Danes summon envoy over Arctic fight — the solution of the dispute is not going to be military'", drew potentially supplementary attention to the issue. A article claimed that Brian Herman, Canada’s only diplomat around Denmark (ambassador Alfonso Gagliano having been recently recalled as a result of an unrelated Canadian scandal), was called prior to a Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to comment about his united states's intentions in a dispute, which experienced, based on data from the article, recently been inflamed by Danish sailors occupying Hans Island.

In March 31, 2004, the Danish & American governments denied that Herman or even any more American official was summoned to the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Each governments stated that a dispute was an extended-standing issue, & that nothing experienced changed in the matter.

A go instance Danish seamen visited a island got get on August 1, 2003, but this page was non bring back the public's attention in a period of the discussion. Comments posted in cyberspace newsgroups & forums suggested that Danish seamen experienced good landed on a Island, despite the fact that this experienced occurred sevener months prior to.

The American military exercise, known as "Narwhal 04", inflamed a issue farther. A select few saw this as a response to the Danish flag planting. Nonetheless this exercise experienced been in the planning stage since September 2003, and it took place in Pangnirtung, Baffin Island, 200Kilometre south of Hans Island. A American armed forces denied that a exercise got anything to clean using a Danish-American territorial dispute. A exercise took place in August 9 to August 30, 2004, involving about 160 soldiers from either a army, various aircraft, chopper & 1 frigate, . Just about 600 Canadian Armed Forces personnel were involved within sum.

Around March, 2005, a Conservative Party of Canada became a number 1 political persin in the united states to advocate the want for Canada to establish its sovereignty on top the Arctic, when person delegates voted nearly nem con in favor a motion on the topic, below an fervent speech from either a youth delegate that cited the Danish encroachment on Hans Island when "constituted nothing short of an invasion of Canada".

The fresh development come to weak fallowing American Defence Minster Bill Graham visited the island in July 20, 2005. Peter Taksoe-Jensen, a head of the International Law department at Denmark's foreign ministry, said the as a result inside an locate by having Reuters on July 25 in response to the event:

''I personally assume Hans Isl& to exist as a portion of Danish territory and may so hand above a complaint all about the American minister's unpredicted visit. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4715245.stm]

This is a 1st period the Danish government official has claimed the isl& is exclusively Danish territory and is non at issue. A Danish government has as well said that it plans to link to to Hans Island in the close first to re-erect its flag. a reaction from either the American government is to become potential.

In August 18, 2005, Canadian frigate left Halifax for an Arctic cruise. [http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/1124378985606_119788185/?hub=TopStories] American officials said a year-long patrol was unrelated to the Hans Island dispute. A Kingston class patrol vessels HMCS Glace Bay and HMCS Shawinigan are also scheduled to patrol the Arctic this year. [http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/1124451989435_49/?hub=Canada]

Google fight
"Google fight" or even "Google war" is the title given to the total of ad using your internet browser research engine Google which promoted either Danish or American sovereignty all over Hans Island.

Based on data from an article in the Ottawa Citizen on July 27, 2005, Toronto resident Rick Broadhead saw an ad on Google stating "Hans Island is Greenland. Greenland natives have used the island for centuries''" and which linked to the Danish foreign affairs web page that stated that Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs experienced sent the note to Canada's ambassador to Denmark in July 25, 2005 expressing Denmark's regret that "the Canadian Minister of National Defence had paid a visit to Hans Island without prior notification of the Danish Government." [http://www.um.dk/en/servicemenu/News/FrontPageNews/HansIslandDanishNoteToCanadianAmbassador.htm] Poul Erik Dam Kristensen, Denmark's ambassador to Canadthe, told a click that the paid ad was non a Danish government initiative & whoever set it was acting alone.

Based in data from a article, this prompted Broadhead to put higher his have ad on Google which linked to [http://www.rickbroadhead.com/hans.htm his own site], which promoted a American claim to the island, in July 26.

Neither ad has been reported to keep close at hand been seen in Google since July 29, 2005.

Satire
A apparent insignificance of the island within relation to the media storm surrounding it has led to the appearance of at least a few site hoping to produce satirical hay of the situation. A and then-known as [http://www.angelfire.com/rebellion2/hans_island/index.htm Hans Island Liberation Front] tries to free streaming them lonely indweller from Danish or even American domination. [http://www.radiofreehansisland.com Radio Free Hans Island] documents an apocryphal radio station said to become broadcasting from either a chilly n. [http://independentsources.com/2005/08/01/hans-island-3/ This blog] 'reported' that Canada was awarding citizenship to the island's rocks. A site [http://www.freehansisland.com Free Hans Island] claims to present objective facts just about a Hans Island dispute, though a validity of this claim may be discussed.

In July 27th, a Swedish radio indicate [http://sr.se/cgi-bin/p3/programsidor/index.asp?ProgramID=2315 Morgonpasset] of Sveriges Radio's channel P3 made the series of prank calls to a Danish and American foreign ministries on the dispute. A Danish foreign minister was reached by Måns Nilsson, one of the radio indicate hosts, world health organization announced that Sweden was also making the claim to the isl& and that the bottle of banana liqueur had been buried on the island and that the statue of noted Swedish TV-personality Lennart Hyland was to be erected across a spot. a call for was besides processed to the American Foreign Ministry, in which Nilsson by using the fake Danish accent claimed to exist as "the Danish foreign minister" & the asking was mass produced to pass in the message to the Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs to cease a conflict & part a island equally by owning Denmark.