The Corfu Channel Incident refers to three separate events involving Royal Navy ships in the Channel of Corfu which took place in 1946, and it is considered an early episode of the Cold War. During the first incident, Royal Navy ships came under fire from Albanian fortifications. The second incident involved Royal Navy ships striking mines and the third incident occurred when the Royal Navy conducted mine-clearing operations in the Corfu Channel, but in Albanian territorial waters, and Albania complained about them to the United Nations.
This series of incidents led to the Corfu Channel Case, where the United Kingdom brought a case against the People's Socialist Republic of Albania to the International Court of Justice. The Court rendered a decision under which Albania was to pay £844,000 to Great Britain, the equivalent of £20 million in 2006. Because of the incidents, Britain, in 1946, broke off talks with Albania aimed at establishing diplomatic relations between the two countries. Diplomatic relations were only restored in 1991.
Read more about Corfu Channel Incident: History, Aftermath, International Law
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