International Relations and Territorial Wars

This paper analyzes the concept of territorial disputes among South-east Asian nations and the risk of war from the perspective of international relations. It explores the causes and consequences of territorial conflicts and their impact on the stability of nations. The paper also discusses the role of international laws and organizations in resolving these disputes.

Running head: INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND TERRITORIAL WARS
International Relations and Territorial Wars
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author’s Note:

1INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND TERRITORIAL WARS
As stated by Knutsen1, the concept of international relations had gained a significant
amount of prominence within the framework of the contemporary political arena because of
the ever increasing number of disputes that the different nations of the world are having with
their neighboring nations and others. Chinkin and Kaldor2 are of the viewpoint that the
concept of international relations is mainly concerned with the management of effective
relationships across boundaries of nation-states. More importantly, the concept also
encompasses various issues like international political economy, intercultural relations,
global governance, foreign policy analysis, developmental issues and others3. The net result
of this is that the concept of international relations is increasingly being seen as a multi-
disciplinary domain which not only analyses the different international issues from the
perspective of different methods or models but at the same time tries to find solutions for the
same as well. This paper will analyze the concept of territorial disputes, among the South-east
Asian nations and the probable risk of war that they pose, from the perspective of
international relations.
As opined by Thompson4, the concept of territorial dispute can be defined as any
form of disagreement or conflict between two or more nations for the possession of the land
that they share amongst them. Kingsbury and Laoutides5 are of the viewpoint that the
territorial disputes have formed the root-cause of numerous conflicts between the different
nations of the world since the traditional times and even in the present age numerous disputes
are still going on because of this dispute. In this regard, mention needs to be made of the land
1 Knutsen, Torbjørn L. A history of international relations theory. Oxford University Press, 2016.
2 Chinkin, Christine, and Mary Kaldor. International law and new wars. Cambridge University Press, 2017.
3 Gilpin, Robert. The political economy of international relations. Princeton University Press, 2016.
4 Thompson, Paul. Peace and war: a theory of international relations. Routledge, 2017.
5 Kingsbury, Damien, and Costas Laoutides, eds. Territorial separatism in global politics: Causes, outcomes
and resolution. Routledge, 2015.

2INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND TERRITORIAL WARS
dispute between the nations of India and Pakistan which had been going on since 1947 and
this in turn is adversely affecting the security as well as the stability of these two nations in a
significant manner6. For example, the nation of Pakistan claims that the state of Kashmir
which presently forms a part of the nation of India belongs to them and on the basis of this
dispute wars like Kargil (1999) and others have been fought by them over the years7. In this
context, it needs to be said that although the United Nations and the different first world
nations like USA, UK and others had tried to intervene in the matter and resolve yet no
consensus had been reached till now. More importantly, in the present times it is seen that the
territorial disputes or conflicts are not just limited to the lands but encompasses the oceans or
the seas as well. One of the most important disputes in this regard which had become a major
problem for the various South-east Asian nations is the dispute over the South China Sea. For
example, it is seen that there are many nations like Brunei, People's Republic of China
(PRC), Republic of China (Taiwan), Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam and
others which are fighting to gain supremacy in the region8. The situation become so intense
that the ‘United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)’ had to intervene in
the above mentioned maritime dispute however China had refused to abide by the 2016
verdict of the UNCLOS9.
According to Li10, the territories of the different nations of the world are being fixed
on mutual accord between the neighboring states and also on the basis of the consent of the
6 Hoffman, Blake, Paul F. Diehl, Andrew Owsiak, Gary Goertz, and Yahve Gallegos. "What’s So Peaceful
about Asian Peace?." Asian International Studies Review 19, no. 1 (2018): 49-73.
7 Remme, Tilman. Britain and Regional Cooperation in South-East Asia, 1945-49 (RLE Modern East and South
East Asia). Routledge, 2015.
8 Catherine K. Le and Michael A. McDevitt, “Maritime Security Issues in East Asia,” Center for Naval
Analyses (CNA) Maritime Asia Project: Workshop Four, September 2013 (Washington D.C.: Center for Naval
Analyses, 2013).
9 Clive Schofield, “Untangling a Complex Web: Understanding Competing Maritime Claims in the South China
Sea,” in Ian Storey and Lin Cheng-yi (eds.), The South China Sea Dispute: Navigating Diplomatic and Strategic
Tensions (Singapore: ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute, 2016), pp. 21-46
10 Li, Rex. "Identity Tensions and China-Japan-Korea Relations: Can Peace be Maintained in North East Asia?."
In Identity, Trust, and Reconciliation in East Asia, pp. 47-73. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, 2018.

3INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND TERRITORIAL WARS
United Nations. However, over the years it had noticed that despite these initiatives among
the diverse tangible conflicts that the different nations face, the territorial disputes are
perhaps the most important ones which is related to the territorial boundaries of the nations or
the states itself11. In this regard, it needs to be said that the territory of any nation signifies the
geographical parameter of the concerned nation and also the values, beliefs and other aspects
of the lives of the people who dwell in the concerned nation12. The net result of this is that the
states or the nations try to maintain as well as defend their territorial boundary against their
neighboring states or nations. In the present times, it is seen that the different nations try to
offer monetary benefits to the nations whose territories they have taken however this is not
such an easy task since the nations do not always forget the territories that they have lost. In
this regard, mention needs to be made of the nation of Germany, which took the French
provinces of Alsace and Lorraine in 1871 however as per the terms of the settlement of the
First World War, France reclaimed those provinces from Germany13. Thus, it can be said that
the territories of any nation are not merely geographical parameters for them but form an
essential element of their nation and national pride itself.
Lin and Gertner14 have articulated the viewpoint that competition over territories
and territorial boundaries have formed the major source of conflict or dispute between the
nations of the world over the years. More importantly, it is seen that these territorial disputes
inevitably result in various kinds of inter-nation wars, conflicts, disputes, terrorism activities
and others which in turn affect the stability of all the nations involved in the process15. In
11 Campbell, Joel. "Japan steps up its game: Tokyo's new security approach and its relations with
Asia." International Affairs 94, no. 4 (2018): 911-920.
12 Harff, Barbara. Ethnic conflict in world politics. Routledge, 2018.
13 Thompson, Paul. Peace and war: a theory of international relations. Routledge, 2017.
14 Lin, Kun-Chin, and Andrés Villar Gertner. "Maritime Security in the Asia-Pacific." Research Paper (2015).
15 Beukel, Erik. The last living fossil of the cold war: The two Koreas, the dragon and the eagle . No. 2012: 10.
DIIS Report, 2012.

4INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND TERRITORIAL WARS
addition to these, it is seen that peaceful negotiations undertaken by the UN and other nations
have failed to yield any significant results in these cases. In this regard, it needs to be said
that although the different disputing nations very rarely wedge actual outright wars and in the
majority of the cases it is seen that the matter is being resolved through the usage of different
kinds of diplomatic measures16. An analysis of the dispute between the nations of South
Korea and Japan which have involved in the Liancourt Rocks dispute many years on this
aspect reveals insightful information. In this regard, it needs to be said that the major land
disputes among the South-east Asian began before the advent of the Second World War when
Japan was following an imperialist policy and trying to gain as much land territory as
possible17. More importantly, even after the completion of the Second World War and the
signing of different kinds of treaties like Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910, surrender of Japan
after the Great War and others have not resolved the situation in any significant manner18. It
is true that as such there had not been any major wars or outbreaks however the volatile
situation in the South-East Asia because of these territorial disputes is a highly unstable one
and present the prospects of war. The international laws and regulations formulated by the
international bodies like UN over the years do not support such territorial acquisitions and as
a matter of fact greatly repudiate the same. For example, the UN Charter (Chapter # 1,
article # 2, Clause # 4) says “All Members shall refrain in their international relations from
the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state,
or in any other manner inconsistent with the Purposes of the United Nations”19. However,
16 James Manicom, “Maritime Security – Will Asia’s Next War Occur at Sea?”, in Joanne Wallis & Andrew
Carr (ed.), Asia-Pacific Security: An Introduction (Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 2016), pp.
147-162.
17 Li, Rex. "Identity Tensions and China-Japan-Korea Relations: Can Peace be Maintained in North East Asia?."
In Identity, Trust, and Reconciliation in East Asia, pp. 47-73. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, 2018.
18 Beukel, Erik. The last living fossil of the cold war: The two Koreas, the dragon and the eagle . No. 2012: 10.
DIIS Report, 2012.
19 Chinkin, Christine, and Mary Kaldor. International law and new wars. Cambridge University Press, 2017.

5INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND TERRITORIAL WARS
despite these initiatives as well as dictums the condition had not improved in any significant
manner over the years and China-Taiwan territorial dispute, Japan conflicting with
Russia for Northern Territories and others20.
Jackson, Sørensen and Møller21 are of the viewpoint that one of the common factors
among the different nations which are facing territorial disputes is the fact that they either had
been colonies in the past or have been involved in the process of colonization in the past. A
pertinent example of this is the territorial dispute that the two nations, China and Taiwan
(once a Japanese colony) are facing and it is seen that China had claimed its right over the
presently free nation of Taiwan and other adjacent islands. In this regard, it needs to be said
that although the Chinese Civil War divided the entire nation of China into two territories,
namely, the Republic of China (Taiwan) and the “People's Republic of China” (China)
yet the dispute still remains whether the islands of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu
should be merged with China or with Taiwan or form independent nations22. Another
pertinent example of this is the territorial dispute that the nation of Japan had faced in the
20th century and 21st century, because of the fact that the majority of the areas over which
Japan is claiming its rights were captured by it before the Second World War during the time
of Japanese Imperialism23. On the score of these, the different kinds of territorial disputes
have been categorized into types, namely, dispute over boundary or a fragment of land
20 Dennis V. Hickey, “China’s Claim to Taiwan: Perceptions and Policies,” in Sumit Ganguly, Andrew Scobell
and Joseph Chinyong Liow (eds.), The Routledge Handbook of Asian Security Studies (London: Routledge,
2010), pp. 48-60.
21 Jackson, Richard, Georg Sørensen, and Jørgen Møller. Introduction to international relations: theories and
approaches. Oxford University Press, USA, 2019.
22 Dennis V. Hickey, “China’s Claim to Taiwan: Perceptions and Policies,” in Sumit Ganguly, Andrew Scobell
and Joseph Chinyong Liow (eds.), The Routledge Handbook of Asian Security Studies (London: Routledge,
2010), pp. 48-60.
23 Harff, Barbara. Ethnic conflict in world politics. Routledge, 2018.

6INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND TERRITORIAL WARS
and dispute over the entire state or nation itself24. For example, the category of dispute
over boundary or a fragment of state is defined as the kind of dispute or conflict in which two
or more nations dispute over a particular state or a piece of land25. The conflict between
China and Taiwan on the score of the islands of Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu is an
important one in this context. On the other hand, dispute over the entire state or nation itself
is the case in which the nations involved in the conflict argue that the concerned state or
nation belongs to them and had been taken from them through unfair or unjustified means26.
The different territorial disputes when analyzed through the specific lens of the
concept of international relations and also its different theories or models would reveal
insightful information. In this regard, Morgenthau’s theory of realism is an important one
which states that just like society the framework of international policies is also governed by
a set of rules or objectives which the different nations need to follow in an ardent manner27.
The realism concept of Morgenthau believes in the creation of a rational theory which
however imperfect tries to distinguish between opinion and truth in an objective manner.
Thus, the territorial disputes when analyzed through the lens of this particular theory of
international relations clearly reveal the fact that the opinion held by the disputing nations
regarding the territories which belong to the others and because of which they are disputing is
not truth rather an opinion with no definite proof for the same. On the other hand, the
international relations theory of liberalism completely repudiates these territorial disputes
24 Balazs, Szanto. "The Senkaku/Diaoyu islands dispute and China’s foreign policy options/Balazs Szanto." PhD
diss., University of Malaya, 2016.
25 Beukel, Erik. The last living fossil of the cold war: The two Koreas, the dragon and the eagle . No. 2012: 10.
DIIS Report, 2012.
26 James Manicom, “Maritime Security – Will Asia’s Next War Occur at Sea?”, in Joanne Wallis & Andrew
Carr (ed.), Asia-Pacific Security: An Introduction (Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 2016), pp.
147-162.
27 Knutsen, Torbjørn L. A history of international relations theory. Oxford University Press, 2016.

7INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND TERRITORIAL WARS
as well as the power politics which such a dispute often entails with it28. In this regard, it
needs to be said that this theory believes in the fact that the different international institutions
like UN and others play a pivotal role in upholding the universal peace as well as safety and
the different nations should try to maintain cordial relations amongst themselves so as to
derive mutual benefits rather than indulging in territorial conflicts or disputes29.
The different kinds of territorial disputes or conflicts that the diverse South-east
Asian nations are experiencing in the present times had not only intensified the political
situation in these nations but at the same time threaten the outbreak of different wars as
well30. As already mentioned, the maritime dispute in the South China Sea among the
different island nations and China had made the political situation of that area very volatile.
In addition to this, the dispute between Japan and South Korea over Dokdo/Takeshima is
another conflict which had intensified the situation in the South-east Asia. In this regard,
Manicom31 has articulated the viewpoint that one of the most negative connotations of these
territorial disputes is the fact that they significantly increase political tensions in the nations
which are involved in the concerned dispute. This can be explained on the basis of the fact
that the territory of any nation or state not only has geographical value but at the same time
contributes in a significant manner towards the identity of the concerned nation or state as
well32. In addition to this, there are various human values as well as ethical values involved in
28 Jackson, Richard, Georg Sørensen, and Jørgen Møller. Introduction to international relations: theories and
approaches. Oxford University Press, USA, 2019.
29 Gilpin, Robert. The political economy of international relations. Princeton University Press, 2016.
30 Cozens, Peter. "Some Reflections on Maritime Boundary and Territorial Disputes in the Asia-Pacific with a
Focus on the South China Sea." In The Best Of Times, The Worst Of Times: Maritime Security in the Asia-
Pacific, pp. 111-138. 2005.
31 James Manicom, “Maritime Security – Will Asia’s Next War Occur at Sea?”, in Joanne Wallis & Andrew
Carr (ed.), Asia-Pacific Security: An Introduction (Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 2016), pp.
147-162.
32 Catherine K. Le and Michael A. McDevitt, “Maritime Security Issues in East Asia,” Center for Naval
Analyses (CNA) Maritime Asia Project: Workshop Four, September 2013 (Washington D.C.: Center for Naval
Analyses, 2013).

8INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND TERRITORIAL WARS
the same as well. For example, it is considered to be unethical on the part of the different
nations to capture the territories of the other merely because they think that it belongs to them
and this in turn deprives the people of the concerned territories of not only their homes as
well as property but at the same time their identity as well33. More importantly, the economic
implications associated with the same cannot be relegated to the background and it is seen
that the majority of the territorial disputes center round the states or the regions which are
economically thriving34. In this regard, mention needs to be made of the territorial dispute
between Japan and Russia over the Northern Territory which as a matter of fact is an
economically thriving region35. Thus, the nations in order to secure as well as maintain their
hold over these territories often resort to the negotiations or seek intervention from the
international institutions like the United Nations.
Kingsbury and Laoutides36 have articulated the viewpoint that the different territorial
wars are greatly affecting the safety as well as security of the world because of the dangers
that they pose not only to the nations which are involved in the conflicts but also to the other
nations as well. In this regard, it needs to be said that the different territorial conflict although
directly do not lead to outright wars because of the mounting international pressure on the
concerned nations yet at the same time it is seen that they have a profound impact on the lives
of the common people and take the lives of a great many people. In this regard, it needs to be
said that unlike the earlier times, the contemporary nations have active relations with not only
33 Yee, Andy. "Maritime territorial disputes in East Asia: a comparative analysis of the South China Sea and the
East China Sea." In Assessing Maritime Disputes in East Asia, pp. 15-36. Routledge, 2017.
34 Clive Schofield, “Untangling a Complex Web: Understanding Competing Maritime Claims in the South
China Sea,” in Ian Storey and Lin Cheng-yi (eds.), The South China Sea Dispute: Navigating Diplomatic and
Strategic Tensions (Singapore: ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute, 2016), pp. 21-46
35 James Manicom, “Maritime Security – Will Asia’s Next War Occur at Sea?”, in Joanne Wallis & Andrew
Carr (ed.), Asia-Pacific Security: An Introduction (Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 2016), pp.
147-162.
36 Kingsbury, Damien, and Costas Laoutides, eds. Territorial separatism in global politics: Causes, outcomes
and resolution. Routledge, 2015.

9INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND TERRITORIAL WARS
their neighbors but also with the other nations of the world as well. These ties are important
not only from the perspective of the growth of the concerned nation but also ensure that they
influence the nations which are going to wedge a war on their allies by mounting
international pressure on them37. Thus, it can be said that although the different territorial
disputes in the South-east Asian nations have intensified the political situation in the
concerned area yet they do not pose any significant risk of war because of the effective
international relations that the concerned nations have developed and also because the wars
are likely to sap a significant amount of their resources.
To conclude, the different kinds of territorial disputes that the different nations of the
world and particularly the South-east Asian nations like Japan, China, Taiwan and others are
facing is greatly affecting the status quo of the world. For example, it is seen that these
disputes not only greatly affect the nations which are involved in these disputes but also their
adjoining nations as well. However, at the same time it is seen that these disputing nations in
the majority of the cases take the help of the frameworks of international relations,
negotiations and others for the resolution of these issues rather than outright wars. The
tendency of these nations to avoid wars can be explained on the basis of the fact that wars are
likely to deplete their resources in a significant manner and also because of the factor of
international relations. These aspects of the framework of international relations and also
territorial disputes become apparent from the above discussion.
37 Gilpin, Robert. The political economy of international relations. Princeton University Press, 2016.

10INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND TERRITORIAL WARS
Reference list
Beukel, Erik. The last living fossil of the cold war: The two Koreas, the dragon and the eagle.
No. 2012: 10. DIIS Report, 2012.
Beukel, Erik. The last living fossil of the cold war: The two Koreas, the dragon and the eagle.
No. 2012: 10. DIIS Report, 2012.
Campbell, Joel. "Japan steps up its game: Tokyo's new security approach and its relations
with Asia." International Affairs 94, no. 4 (2018): 911-920.
Catherine K. Le and Michael A. McDevitt, “Maritime Security Issues in East Asia,” Center
for Naval Analyses (CNA) Maritime Asia Project: Workshop Four, September 2013
(Washington D.C.: Center for Naval Analyses, 2013).
Catherine K. Le and Michael A. McDevitt, “Maritime Security Issues in East Asia,” Center
for Naval Analyses (CNA) Maritime Asia Project: Workshop Four, September 2013
(Washington D.C.: Center for Naval Analyses, 2013).
Chinkin, Christine, and Mary Kaldor. International law and new wars. Cambridge University
Press, 2017.
Clive Schofield, “Untangling a Complex Web: Understanding Competing Maritime Claims
in the South China Sea,” in Ian Storey and Lin Cheng-yi (eds.), The South China Sea
Dispute: Navigating Diplomatic and Strategic Tensions (Singapore: ISEAS – Yusof
Ishak Institute, 2016), pp. 21-46
Clive Schofield, “Untangling a Complex Web: Understanding Competing Maritime Claims
in the South China Sea,” in Ian Storey and Lin Cheng-yi (eds.), The South China Sea

11INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND TERRITORIAL WARS
Dispute: Navigating Diplomatic and Strategic Tensions (Singapore: ISEAS – Yusof
Ishak Institute, 2016), pp. 21-46
Cozens, Peter. "Some Reflections on Maritime Boundary and Territorial Disputes in the
Asia-Pacific with a Focus on the South China Sea." In The Best Of Times, The Worst
Of Times: Maritime Security in the Asia-Pacific, pp. 111-138. 2005.
Gilpin, Robert. The political economy of international relations. Princeton University Press,
2016.
Gilpin, Robert. The political economy of international relations. Princeton University Press,
2016.
Gilpin, Robert. The political economy of international relations. Princeton University Press,
2016.
Harff, Barbara. Ethnic conflict in world politics. Routledge, 2018.
Hoffman, Blake, Paul F. Diehl, Andrew Owsiak, Gary Goertz, and Yahve Gallegos. "What’s
So Peaceful about Asian Peace?." Asian International Studies Review 19, no. 1
(2018): 49-73.
Jackson, Richard, Georg Sørensen, and Jørgen Møller. Introduction to international
relations: theories and approaches. Oxford University Press, USA, 2019.
James Manicom, “Maritime Security – Will Asia’s Next War Occur at Sea?”, in Joanne
Wallis & Andrew Carr (ed.), Asia-Pacific Security: An Introduction (Washington,
DC: Georgetown University Press, 2016), pp. 147-162.

12INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND TERRITORIAL WARS
James Manicom, “Maritime Security – Will Asia’s Next War Occur at Sea?”, in Joanne
Wallis & Andrew Carr (ed.), Asia-Pacific Security: An Introduction (Washington,
DC: Georgetown University Press, 2016), pp. 147-162.
James Manicom, “Maritime Security – Will Asia’s Next War Occur at Sea?”, in Joanne
Wallis & Andrew Carr (ed.), Asia-Pacific Security: An Introduction (Washington,
DC: Georgetown University Press, 2016), pp. 147-162.
Kingsbury, Damien, and Costas Laoutides, eds. Territorial separatism in global politics:
Causes, outcomes and resolution. Routledge, 2015.
Kingsbury, Damien, and Costas Laoutides, eds. Territorial separatism in global politics:
Causes, outcomes and resolution. Routledge, 2015.
Knutsen, Torbjørn L. A history of international relations theory. Oxford University Press,
2016.
Li, Rex. "Identity Tensions and China-Japan-Korea Relations: Can Peace be Maintained in
North East Asia?." In Identity, Trust, and Reconciliation in East Asia, pp. 47-73.
Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, 2018.
Li, Rex. "Identity Tensions and China-Japan-Korea Relations: Can Peace be Maintained in
North East Asia?." In Identity, Trust, and Reconciliation in East Asia, pp. 47-73.
Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, 2018.
Lin, Kun-Chin, and Andrés Villar Gertner. "Maritime Security in the Asia-Pacific." Research
Paper (2015).
Remme, Tilman. Britain and Regional Cooperation in South-East Asia, 1945-49 (RLE
Modern East and South East Asia). Routledge, 2015.

13INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND TERRITORIAL WARS
Thompson, Paul. Peace and war: a theory of international relations. Routledge, 2017.
Thompson, Paul. Peace and war: a theory of international relations. Routledge, 2017.
Yee, Andy. "Maritime territorial disputes in East Asia: a comparative analysis of the South
China Sea and the East China Sea." In Assessing Maritime Disputes in East Asia, pp.
15-36. Routledge, 2017.