ConflictBarometer_2015

ASIA AND OCEANIA
India refrain from taking actions that might complicate the
border issue. The Indian Ministry of External Affairs rejected
the critique, stating that Arunachal Pradesh was an integral
part of India. From May 14 to 16, during Modi's visit to China,
he and Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang agreed to seek a
fair resolution to the border disputes. The two sides also
signed several trade and economic cooperation deals. On
June 22, China opened a new border crossing between India
and Tibet, enabling Indian pilgrims to visit Mount Kailash. In
June, China blocked a move from India at the UN Sanctions
Committee to question Pakistan's release of Zaki-ur-Rehman
Lakhvi, a Lashkar-e-Toiba commander involved in the 2008
terrorist attacks in Mumbai [→ India (JeM et al./Kashmir)]. In
response, India addressed its concerns to the Chinese government.
In September, the Indian Home Ministry claimed that China
conducted construction activities in the border area close to
Burtse, Jammu and Kashmir, subsequently leading to a standoff
between the People's Liberation Army (PLA) and the Indo-
Tibetan Border Police together with the Indian Army. China
denied the standoff. On October 8, senior officials from both
sides committed to resolve border disputes through dialogue
and negotiations at a meeting of the Working Mechanism for
Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs.
On November 14, a PLA team in a light armored vehicle was
seen patrolling on the Indian side of the Line of Actual Control
in Chushul, Leh district, Jammu and Kashmir.
A high-level Chinese military delegation and senior Indian
officials held talks from November 15 to 17. Both sides
endorsed concrete actions to implement the Border Defense
Cooperation Agreement reached in 2013. During a visit to
Beijing from December 14 to 20, the head of Indian Army's
Northern Command held talks with General Sun Jianguo, PLA
Deputy Chief of General Staff. Both expressed their hope for
increased cooperation between the two armies and on the
issue of counterterrorism. als
CHINA USA
Intensity: 1 | Change: | Start: 1949
Conflict parties:
PRC vs. USA
Conflict items: system/ideology, international
power
The dispute over international power and ideology between
the People's Republic of China (PRC) and the USA continued.
While bilateral relations saw agreement on economic cooperation,
climate change, cybersecurity, and peacekeeping,
tensions over regional issues remained unresolved. In early
April, the US condemned Chinese construction of artificial islands
in the South China Sea [→ China Vietnam et al. (South
China Sea)]. On May 21, the Chinese People's Liberation Army
(PLA) repeatedly warned a US P8-A Poseidon surveillance aircraft
to leave the airspace over disputed islands in the South
China Sea. In late May, during the 14th IISS Shangri-La Dialogue
in Singapore, diplomatic tensions between the two
countries arose. US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter labeled
PRC's activities in the South China Sea a challenge to international
law and norms. Subsequently, the Pentagon claimed
that the PRC had placed mobile artillery weapons systems on
the Spratly Islands. Admiral Sun Jianguo, Deputy Chief of the
PLA General Staff, reiterated PRC's ''Peaceful Development''
policy and the legitimacy of the construction activities in the
South China Sea. The Chinese Foreign Ministry later released
a rebuttal to Carter's speech, stressing that the South China
Sea should not be an issue between the US and China. On
October 27, the missile destroyer USS Lassen conducted a
''freedom of navigation operation,'' passing within twelve
nautical miles of the Spratly Islands' Subi Reef. Two Chinese
vessels followed the destroyer and issued warnings to leave
the territory. On December 10, the Chinese Defense Ministry
criticized the crossing of the twelve-nautical-miles zone off
one of the Spratly Islands by two US B-52 bombers. The Pentagon
declared that the route had been taken accidentally
due to bad weather conditions.
On April 28, PRC criticized the US Japan New Defense
Guidelines for bilateral defense cooperation as ''Cold War
practices'' [→ Japan China (East China Sea)].
In early February, the Dalai Lama met US President Barack
Obama. The Chinese government responded to the event
with criticism. At the 19th US-China Human Rights Dialogue
on August 13, US representatives criticized the Chinese government
for the crackdown on lawyers, discrimination of
Tibetan and Uyghur minorities, and the newly-passed National
Security Law [→ China (opposition); China (Tibet);
China (Uyghurs/Xinjiang)]. In response, China pointed out
racial discrimination in the United States. On December 16,
the PRC condemned US authorization of an arms deal with
Taiwan and announced sanctions against the companies involved
[→ China (Taiwan)].
Cybersecurity remained another source of tensions. In June,
the US Office of Personnel Management (OPM) had confirmed
a massive data breach, compromising the records of an estimated
21.5 million government employees. China denied
any involvement. On September 16, the US warned China
that it would consider state-sponsored cyber espionage as an
''act of aggression.'' Nine days later, during a summit meeting
between US President Barack Obama and Chinese leader Xi
Jinping in Washington, both sides reached an agreement on
cybersecurity, which included the establishment of a highlevel
dialogue mechanism on cybercrime. The summit also
resulted in the confirmation of a crisis reporting mechanism
between both sides' militaries. lsc
CHINA VIETNAM ET AL. (SOUTH CHINA SEA)
Intensity: 2 | Change: | Start: 1949
Conflict parties: Brunei vs. PRC vs. ROC vs. Malaysia
vs. Vietnam vs. Philippines
Conflict items: territory, international power, resources
The conflict over territory, resources, and international power
in the South China Sea between Brunei, the governments
of the People's Republic of China (PRC) and the Republic
of China (ROC), Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam deescalated
to a non-violent crisis.
During the year, the PRC increased construction activities on
its artificial islands in the disputed waters, building airstrips
on Fiery Cross / Yongshu Reef and Subi / Zhubi Reef in the
Spratly Islands. In early February, satellite images discovered
the PRC's reclamation activity on Mischief / Meiji Reef. On
October 9, it completed the construction of two lighthouses
on Cuarteron/ Huayang Reef and Johnson South / Chigua
Reef in the Spratly Islands.
On April 29, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) criticized China's landfill activities in the disputed
waters and urged the adoption of a code of conduct in the
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