It's a story that might have stretched even the vivid imagination of Hans Christian Andersen. 

 

A little country, widely admired for its good behaviour on the world stage,  suddenly finds itself the target of demonstrations and death threats.  Denmark, more famous for fairytales than fatwahs, is now the Islamic world's public enemy number one.  Incensed by drawings of the prophet Mohammed that appeared in a Danish newspaper, many Muslims have taken their anger to the streets, while Arab governments have demanded an apology.
 
Cartoons may seem unlikely as the flashpoint for diplomatic disharmony, but this is not the first time that apparently innocuous images have triggered international incidents. 
 
Last year, Pakistan's parliament protested after the Washington Times published a cartoon depicting Pakistan as a dog.  The drawing of an American soldier rewarding the dog for capturing a terrorist followed the detention in Pakistan of a close associate of Osama Bin Laden.  Pakistanis objected, claiming the image suggested a master-slave relationship between the two countries.  But in his defence the cartoonist, Bill Garner, insisted no slight was intended:  "There has always been a great friendship with animals, especially dogs, in America."
 
Many Americans themselves took offence when Mexico's post office issued a set of stamps featuring a black cartoon character.  Associations representing black Americans said the stamps showed a negative stereotype and accused Mexico of racism.  The row went as far as the White House, with President Bush's press secretary expressing official displeasure:  "Racial stereotypes are offensive no matter what their origin. The Mexican government needs to take this into account. Images like these have no place in today's world." Mexico said  the US didn't understand Mexican culture.
 
Across the Pacific, old wounds between Korea and Japan were re-opened when sketches by school students went on display at a Korean subway station.  The drawings depicted violent scenes on the Takeshima Islands, over which both Korea and Japan claim sovereignty.  Figures were shown in hand-to-hand combat, crying "Kill!" and "Die."  After Japanese protests, the images were removed, but the incident left an unfortunate stain on 2005, designated "Korea-Japan Friendship Year".

 
Perhaps the unlikeliest diplomatic row over an image causing offence blew up over an advert for a Thai restaurant in Philadelphia.  The advert, appearing  in the City Paper, showed the king of Thailand as an urban hipster, complete with blond highlights and stone-encrusted glasses.  The restaurant thought it was an amusing way to promote party nights, but the Royal Thai Consulate failed to see the funny side.  The consul demanded an apology, saying the image threatened US-Thai relations, and even  threatened to refuse visas for Americans planning to visit Thailand. The advert was eventually dropped when the restaurant owner received  dozens of protests from Thai nationals.
 

Incidents such as these usually fizzle out fairly quickly, but six months after the Mohammed cartoons were first published, Denmark is still at the eye of a storm that shows no sign of blowing over.   Whatever the eventual outcome, the affair is a graphic reminder that one man's joke can be another man's insult.</span>