4 ms·

I cant' help but rejoice that europe's borders (at least within the eu) are a mere stone. Not too long ago moving that stone might have led to war, now it leads

I cant' help but rejoice that europe's borders (at least within the eu) are a mere stone. Not too long ago moving that stone might have led to war, now it leads to jokes.

berkes 5y ago
A related story is the border between Belgium and the Netherlands that was recently moved[1]. Not because some war was imminent, but because of very practical reasons: Belgian police could only reach that piece of Belgium by boat; so "exchanging it with NL" was the easiest, because the Dutch police could just drive there. It makes me happy to see that we're down to "practical exchanges of land" from centuries of war over the most silly pole, church or "slight". [1] https://nos.nl/artikel/2112869-nederland-krijgt-belgisch-schiereiland https://nos.nl/artikel/2112869-nederland-krijgt-belgisch-sch... Dutch only, sorry.
- sangnoir 5y ago
  What are the logistics regarding nationality and property within the exchanged land? Are the inhabitants now dutch, or Belgians who now own Dutch property?
  - garmaine 5y ago
    I don’t know about this case, but typically this is uninhabited, unimproved land that is exchanged.
    - sangnoir 5y ago
      I had assumed that the land was occupied because the motivation for the exchange mentioned in the article are reports of crime (nudity, drugs) that Belgian police can't easily attend to. It is likely the suspects were visitors to the area.
    - the-dude 5y ago
      Dutchie here, FTA : > wordt geklaagd over drugsoverlast, afval en naaktloperij So the actual problems are complaints about drug users, illegal trash dumping and nudism. And the negotiations only took 5 years.
      - ParanoidShroom 5y ago
        >And the negotiations only took 5 years. Yeaaaah I'm gonna point fingers to Belgium tho.
- FabHK 5y ago
  Or the Whisky War over Hans Island, which the Canadians claim and leave a bottle of (Canadian) whisky, upon which the Danish claim it and leave a bottle of (Danish) snaps, ad infinitum. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whisky_War https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whisky_War
  - jacquesm 5y ago
    I can see a business in there somewhere.
  - tonfa 5y ago
    It's pretty significant right? Island typically procure claims over a large surrounding area, and there's quite a bit of resources in the arctic.
    - capableweb 5y ago
      I think FabHK is referring to not the strategic advantage of "owning" that island but rather how that border-conflict is managed. Instead of stationing soldiers who shoot on sight, they manage the conflict by exchanging liquor.

I cant' help but rejoice that europe's borders (at least within the eu) are a mere stone. Not too long ago moving that stone might have led to war, now it leads to jokes.

berkes 5y ago

A related story is the border between Belgium and the Netherlands that was recently moved[1]. Not because some war was imminent, but because of very practical reasons: Belgian police could only reach that piece of Belgium by boat; so "exchanging it with NL" was the easiest, because the Dutch police could just drive there. It makes me happy to see that we're down to "practical exchanges of land" from centuries of war over the most silly pole, church or "slight". [1] https://nos.nl/artikel/2112869-nederland-krijgt-belgisch-schiereiland https://nos.nl/artikel/2112869-nederland-krijgt-belgisch-sch... Dutch only, sorry.

sangnoir 5y ago
What are the logistics regarding nationality and property within the exchanged land? Are the inhabitants now dutch, or Belgians who now own Dutch property?
- garmaine 5y ago
  I don’t know about this case, but typically this is uninhabited, unimproved land that is exchanged.
  - sangnoir 5y ago
    I had assumed that the land was occupied because the motivation for the exchange mentioned in the article are reports of crime (nudity, drugs) that Belgian police can't easily attend to. It is likely the suspects were visitors to the area.
  - the-dude 5y ago
    Dutchie here, FTA : > wordt geklaagd over drugsoverlast, afval en naaktloperij So the actual problems are complaints about drug users, illegal trash dumping and nudism. And the negotiations only took 5 years.
    - ParanoidShroom 5y ago
      >And the negotiations only took 5 years. Yeaaaah I'm gonna point fingers to Belgium tho.
FabHK 5y ago
Or the Whisky War over Hans Island, which the Canadians claim and leave a bottle of (Canadian) whisky, upon which the Danish claim it and leave a bottle of (Danish) snaps, ad infinitum. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whisky_War https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whisky_War
- jacquesm 5y ago
  I can see a business in there somewhere.
- tonfa 5y ago
  It's pretty significant right? Island typically procure claims over a large surrounding area, and there's quite a bit of resources in the arctic.
  - capableweb 5y ago
    I think FabHK is referring to not the strategic advantage of "owning" that island but rather how that border-conflict is managed. Instead of stationing soldiers who shoot on sight, they manage the conflict by exchanging liquor.