Part of the border between the two Alpine countries has historically been marked by the watershed of the Theodul glacier.

However, the glacier has shrunk significantly, losing almost a quarter of its total mass between 1973 and 2010 and even more since then.

While the two countries have occasionally redrawn the border in response to glacial changes, the most recent revision – approved in Switzerland and now pending formal Italian approval – is more complex as it is very close to a massive skiing resort, Euronews reports.

The need for a revision became apparent two years ago, when a mountain refuge said it no longer knew whether it was located in Switzerland or in Italy.

It is the first time that economic considerations have been taken into account in redrawing the 100-metre-long section of the border.