Tripoint

For other meanings, see tripoint (disambiguation).

A disputed tripoint between Syria-Israel and Jordan

A tripoint, trijunction,^[1] triple point or tri-border area is a geographical point at which the borders of three countries or subnational entities meet.

There are approximately 176 international tripoints.^[2] Nearly half are situated in rivers, lakes or seas. When on dry land, the exact tripoints are usually indicated by markers or pillars, and occasionally by larger monuments.

Usually, the more neighbours a country has, the more international tripoints that country has. China with 16 tripoints and Russia with 11 to 14 lead the list of states by number of tripoints. Within Europe, landlocked Austria has nine tripoints, among them two with Switzerland and Liechtenstein. Island countries such as Japan have no tricountry points (some, like Bahrain and Singapore, have tripoints in the territorial waters), nor have states with only one neighbour state, like Portugal or Denmark. Likewise the United States with two neighbour states has no tricountry points; it has a number of tristate points as well as one point where four states meet. Canada, as well, has a four-point area, where Nunavut, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and the Northwest Territories meet.

Border junctions (or "multiple points" or "multipoints" as they are also sometimes called) are most commonly threefold. There are also a number of quadripoints, and a handful of fivefold points, as well as probably unique examples of a sixfold, sevenfold, and eightfold point.^{[citation needed]} No more than eight borders meet at a single multipoint anywhere on earth, but the territorial claims of six countries converge at the south pole in a point of elevenfold complexity.

It is often illegal to pass a national border outside border controls, and therefore illegal to walk around many tripoint markers. According to the Schengen rules, it is illegal to pass the outside border of the Schengen area except at border controls.^[3] But it is legal to pass the border between two Schengen countries at any place. Countries with good relations will generally have the checkpoints a bit off the technical border line to allow tourists to walk around border marker monuments without getting in the way of immigration authorities.

Examples

Vaalserberg: Tripoint (Germany/Netherlands/Belgium)

Well known international tripoints include:

the Treriksröset of Finland, Norway, and Sweden (the northernmost international tripoint in the world; the exact point is in a lake, but a marker is built on that point)
the Vaalserberg of the Netherlands, Germany, and Belgium
the "Dreiländereck" of Germany, France, and Switzerland (the exact point is in the river and the marker is not on the exact point)
the Schengen tripoint of Germany, France, and Luxembourg (where the Schengen Agreement was signed, on board a boat, since the tripoint is in the river)
the Triple Frontier of Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay
the Tres Fronteras of Brazil, Peru, and Colombia
the Mont Dolent of Italy, France, and Switzerland (the exact point is not at the peak but around 200 metres (700 ft) to the northwest)
Bratislava is the only capital city in the world which is located at a tripoint: Slovakia, Hungary, Austria

Some historic tripoints:

the historic Three Emperors' Corner of Austria–Hungary, the Russian Empire, and German Empire
the historic Piz da las Trais Linguas (Ortler Alps) of Austria–Hungary, the Kingdom of Italy, and Switzerland
the historic Rock of the Three Kingdoms between the former kingdoms of Galicia, León, and Portugal (now part of the border between Kingdom of Spain and the Portuguese Republic).^[4]
the Tossal dels Tres Reis ('Peak of the Three Kings'), located where the borders of the ancient Kingdoms of Valencia, Catalonia, and Aragon meet.^[5]

For a full list, see list of tripoints.

International agreements

While the exact line of an international border is normally fixed by a bilateral treaty, the position of the tripoints may need to be settled by a trilateral agreement. For example, China, Russia, and Mongolia have set the position of the two relevant tripoints (the junction points of the China–Russia border, the Mongolia–Russia border, and the China–Mongolia border) by the trilateral agreement signed in Ulaan Baator on January 27, 1994. The agreement specified that a marker was to be erected at the eastern tripoint, called Tarbagan-Dakh (the marker and the access roads for it are visible on Google Maps, at approximately Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.), but no marker will be erected at the western tripoint (which was defined as the peak of the mountain Tavan-Bogdo-Ula (Kuitunshan, Tavan Bogd Uul).^[6]

Gallery

5,653 metres (18,547 ft) high extinct stratovolcano Zapaleri serves as the tripoint between Argentina, Bolivia, and Chile
Dreiländereck Basel: Switzerland, Germany, and France
Europadenkmal: Germany, Belgium, and Luxembourg
Zittau: Tripoint of Germany, Czech Republic, and Poland
Treriksröset: Finland, Norway, and Sweden tripoint
Tripoint of Russia, Norway, and Finland
Arnoldstein: Italy, Slovenia, and Austria tripoint
Border stone on the tripoint of the Czech Republic (foreground), Austria, and Germany
Tripont of the Czech Republic (foreground), Poland, and Slovakia
The tripoint of Austria, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia near Hohenau an der March
A sign near the tripoint of Slovakia, Hungary, and Austria. This photograph was taken from the Slovak side.
Border stone on the tripoint of Poland (right of photograph), Slovakia, and Ukraine (left)
Border stone on the tripoint of Bulgaria (right of photograph), Greece (left), and the Republic of Macedonia, located on the Tumba Peak in the Belasica mountains
The tripoint of France, Italy, and Switzerland is located on Mont Dolent.
The southern tripoint of Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and Austria is located at the Naafkopf.
Border stone on the tripoint of Venezuela (foreground), Brazil, and Guyana located on Mount Roraima
Border stone on the Argentinian side of the Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay tripoint (the Triple Frontier)
Tripoint of Thailand, Burma, and Laos located on a sandbar in the Mekong
3rd peak of Mount Sabyinyo, tripoint of Uganda, Rwanda and DRC