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“The border is just a line on a paper, but the reindeer have been using these lands since ancient times,” Inga said by phone this week. “We really need a treaty that regulates this on both sides of the border, given that the Norwegian state now says it is going to take vigorous action against the so-called ‘Swedish’ reindeer husbandry.”

Dale’s threats comes as he was meeting his counterpart in northern Sweden to resolve the conflict, which has been unresolved since a previous agreement lapsed in 2005. The tension over the past years has threatened to erupt in violence and working groups have sought to bridge differences.

Norway says it has taken measures to reduce its stock, while Sweden’s is expanding. The “spring” herds in Norway are estimated to have dropped to about 280,000 last year from almost 350,000 in 2010, according to Statistics Norway. The herds in Sweden can count as many as 280,000 during the winter, according to the Swedish Sami parliament.

An estimated 80,000 to 100,000 Samis live in what’s called Sapmi, a territory that spans parts of Scandinavia, Finland and Russia. The biggest number live in Norway.

Norwegian herders are keen to protect their pastures and are also worried of the potential risk of a spread of chronic wasting disease, detected for the first time in northern Norway in 2016. They have urged the government to prod Sweden to ratify a new agreement.

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It’s not acceptable that Swedish reindeer are crowding out Norwegian herds that have been reduced to limit over-grazing, Dale said in a statement after the meeting with Swedish Rural Affairs Minister Sven-Erik Bucht.