Possible Clues:

• To ease the tension it gets pitched into the river
• Sort of thaw
• Thawing of an international dispute
• Relaxing of strained relations between countries
• Ending of strained relations of French and English in explosive dispute, finally
• Period of relaxation having taking a knock largely with alien invasion
• Relief when river is kept outside shelter
• Partially divide ten territories, lessening hostility
• Sign of better relations
• Global thawing, of a sort