Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
states with the right to delimit their offshore areas.
These coastal states, together with the island
dependencies mentioned above, will generate
approximately 420 international maritime
boundaries. Maritime boundary delimitation only
began in earnest less than fifty years ago, and by
1998 only about 150 (35 per cent) had been
formally agreed. At the present rate of about five
agreements per annum (Charney and Alexander
1993; 1998), the offshore international boundary
map will take fifty-four years to complete.
How many of the world's boundaries are
disputed? Attempts to draw up lists of disputed
boundaries around the world always differ in
certain respects, and the totals rarely tally. There
are problems of definition and information. Paul
Huth (1996) has written a most valuable analysis,
covering land and island disputes (not maritime
disputes) from 1950 to 1990. Using a strict
definition of 'dispute', Huth identified 129 cases,
116 of which he categorised as 'boundary' rather
than 'territorial' disputes. During the period
1950-90, 33 per cent of borders were at some
point in dispute ( ibid. : p. 34).This coincides with
best estimates of the proportion of land
boundaries in dispute in 1998. Since the Soviet
Union broke up in 1989, it has been difficult to
estimate the number of true boundary disputes
there. Kolossov et al . (1992: pp. 42-50) counted
168 ethno-territorial conflicts, a quarter of
which involved boundary changes on state
borders. As to maritime boundaries, there are 270
undelimited. In a significant proportion of cases,
no attempt is yet being made to delimit
boundaries, and therefore no dispute has
emerged. There are, however, a number of
ongoing maritime boundary disputes, including
at least thirty associated with disputed island
sovereignty, and about thirty other delimitation
disputes (McDorman and Chircop 1991: pp.
344-86). Thus approximately 22 per cent of the
undelimited maritime boundaries are already
known to be in dispute, and the signs are that
there will be a lot more. Many of these should be
resolved peacefully, but among them are nasty
potential flashpoints, in the Aegean and South
China Seas, for example.
By most reckoning, this amounts to a large
number of boundary disputes, but we should not
be surprised. The land boundary system was
largely the creation of Europe, usually
superimposed on the underlying geography, and
boundary lines of no width were an alien concept
in many parts of the world. Many boundaries
came about almost by accident, and the wonder is
that they have survived at all. But whatever the
causes of disputes may be, they should be taken
seriously; one-third of the wars fought since 1945
had territorial questions as a major contributory
factor. At a time when globalisation and the
'borderless world' are topics of debate among
social scientists, it is tempting to regard border
troubles as of diminishing significance.
Unfortunately, the evidence is to quite the
contrary.
THE CHARACTERISTICS OF
INTERNATIONAL BOUNDARIES
Land boundaries
The land boundaries between states appear on our
world maps as thin lines, usually depicted by the
same colour and symbol throughout. In reality,
state boundaries differ greatly in their origins, age,
permeability and degree of conformity to the
human and physical geography. Some boundaries
have been formally agreed and marked out on the
ground. Others have never been properly
delimited or demarcated and continue to carry the
seeds of potential conflict. The borderlands on
each side of the boundary may be hostile, or may
enjoy a high level of integration. Generalisations
about the world's 300-plus land boundaries are
therefore difficult, but one universal characteristic
is their sensitivity. International boundaries mark
the absolute limits of state sovereignty, of the
identity of its peoples, the extent of its legal and
administrative system, resources, and security
arrangements. The boundary marks the interface
between neighbouring states and is often used as
the setting for symbolic acts of friendship or
hostility.
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