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Thursday was a study in contrasts between the NDP premiers of British Columbia and Alberta as they turned down the boiling temperature in the bitumen battle and wine blockade.

On one side of the Rockies, a sombre B.C. Premier John Horgan announced he’s pivoting on his plan to proceed with proposed regulations that would restrict bitumen shipments moving through that province.

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Instead, he’ll refer the jurisdictional issue to the courts.

On the other side, Rachel Notley declared a “small victory” in this province’s push to improve access to tidewater for Alberta oil, while announcing she will suspend her government’s embargo of B.C. wine imports.

These decisions won’t fix the fundamental disagreement between neighbours over oil pipelines and bitumen, but it marks the first real progress since a trade fight began last month — and a much-needed de-escalation by all sides.

“This is intended to have cooler heads prevail. We believe that the rule of law is important in this country,” Horgan told reporters.