Was the object seen in the skies above Newfoundland a French missile launched from Brittany?

The rocket or missile that appeared in the sky over Newfoundland did not originate in Saint-Pierre and Miquelon. Any reports claiming so are erroneous. The islands do not have any permanent military presence except for a small coast guard vessel.

It is likely that missile tests conducted over the North Atlantic by a French submarine based in Brittany are the cause of these sightings.

• French reports
  • Agence France Presse
  • Ouest- France
• Canadian reports
  • VOCM Radio
  • CBC Newfoundland & Labrador
  • Canadian Press
  • National Post
  • Global Security Newswire

Photo Darlene Stewart, Harbour Mile, Newfoundland

“En outre, les titulaires d’un document d’identité canadien en provenance directe du Canada sont dispensés de passeport et de visa pour un séjour à Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon n’excédant pas trois mois par période de six mois.” – Arrêté du 14 décembre 2009 relatif aux documents et visas exigés pour l’entrée des étrangers (… à) Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon

Saint-Pierre et Miquelon Travel Information : www.st-pierre-et-miquelon.com

Located fewer than twelve miles to the south of the Island of Newfoundland, in the frigid waters of the North Atlantic, Saint-Pierre et Miquelon is home to a unique mix of French citizens. The unofficial flag of the islands, which is often seen next to the tricolour, contains three symbols of French regionalism. Above the Norman standard, the Breton Gwan ha Du is the Ikurriña in all its splendour.

The first Basques to make Saint-Pierre and Miquelon their shelter were from Ciboure and Saint-Jean de Luz. In fact, it has been proven that the name of the island of Miquelon is of Basque origin. The first documented use of the name Miquelon is in Martin de Hoyarçabal’s famous nautical instruction book, dated 1578. Old XVIIth century maps of Saint-Pierre have a Lizardie harbour, named after Adam de Chibau’s captain, Jean de Lizardie. Furthermore in 1697, a captain from Donostia, Martin de Sapiain indicated during a trial that Basque fishermen were to be found in many places in Newfoundland, including San Pierre and Miquele Portu.

The XVIIIth century was a time of war between France and England. Saint-Pierre et Miquelon was attacked and the population deported three times (1713, 1778, 1793). It is only in 1816 that the islands were back under French rule. Basque migration to the islands soared until the late XIXth century. They came from Saint-Jean de Luz, Bidart, Urrugne, Hendaye and even as far as Sare, Ascain and Saint Etienne de Baïgorri.

Early in the XXth century, the American writer George England, passing through the islands left this description of his encounter with a Saint-Pierre Basque : “At a farm I observed an old man with huge trousers of meal sacking, engaged in sawing wood with a bucksaw which he held between his knees, rubbing the stick up and down on the teeth. The old man’s red sash told me he was a Basque. (…) His wrinkled face, bright eyes, and sweeping mustaches would have warmed a painter’s heart. He was a very voluble old fellow, and for half an hour he told me words and phrases in the mysterious and little-known Basque tongue. No foreigner, I believe, has ever learned to speak it well, and one must be born a Basque to fathom its complexities. Sailors claim the only outsider who has ever learned Basque is the Old Boy himself. After I chatted pleasantly with the man from the Pyrenees, I bade him good-by and returned to the heights overlooking drowsy St. Pierre.”

Unfortunately the language disappeared by the late 1950’s. Too late for any revival, but pride does not dissipate as easily! Today, many Saint-Pierre youth, with Basque ancestry or not, learn to play Pelota against the Zazpiak Bat, North America’s oldest Fronton.

More information at GrandColombier.com

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An expedition is currently in Saint-Pierre and Miquelon searching for the remnants of the White Bird.

An approximate transcript of the commentary by Peter Mansbridge : “An update on that international dustup over the seabed off of Newfoundland. France has made good on its threat and filed letter of intent with the United Nations., laying claim to a vast energy rich section of ocean. France says its rights extend beyond the 200 nautical mile mark of its territory Saint Pierre and Miquelon. It wants its boundary to extend all the way to the continental shelf. Canada maintains the dispute was settled years ago by the international court of arbitration. “

The graphic used in the newscast would lead anyone to believe France and Saint-Pierre et Miquelon want to rescind the 1992 arbitration, yet there is nothing in the documents filed by France that makes any such claim.

• French letter of intent (pdf)
• French preliminary supporting documents (pdf)

Without the shadow of a doubt, the Economist invalidates Canada’s claim the issue was settled in 1992: “It (Canada) said, wrongly, that the matter had been settled by arbitration in 1992 and that it would – take all necessary measures to defend and protect its rights. – (Canada has until 2013 to file its claim.) In fact the 1992 decision fixed the maritime boundaries between Canada and the islands, and did not demarcate the continental shelf.”

Source: The Economist, May 7th 2009

Editorial.

We would also like to remind our readers that asking SPM to “join Canada” is as offensive to locals as asking Canadians to just give up on being who they are and just “join the USA”. It’s not just about borders, it’s about culture, language, heritage and history.