ConflictBarometer_2016

ASIA AND OCEANIA
Meeting on the China-India Boundary Question was held in
the Chinese capital Beijing. On June 10, India carried out
joint military exercises with the US and Japan in the vicinity
of the South China Sea [→ China – Vietnam et al. (South China
Sea)]. In mid-July, India deployed 100 T-72 tanks in eastern
Ladakh near the LAC. Subsequently, the Chinese government
stressed that the two countries should be committed to resolve
territorial disputes peacefully through negotiations. On
August 2, India's Cabinet Committee on Security approved the
deployment of short-range supersonic cruise missiles, Brah-
Mos Block III, in an area near the LAC in Arunachal Pradesh.
On October 21, the US ambassador to India, Richard Verma,
visited the disputed area in Arunachal Pradesh bordering the
region of southern Tibet, which was criticized by China [→
(China – USA)]. On December 2, Indian authorities granted the
visit of the 17th Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorje, a Tibetan spiritual
leader to the disputed area of West Kameng in Arunachal
Pradesh. Three days later, the Chinese Foreign Ministry urged
India not to complicate the boundary dispute. lja
CHINA – USA
Intensity: 2 | Change: | Start: 1949
Conflict parties:
Conflict items:
PRC vs. USA
system/ideology, international power
The non-violent crisis over international power and system/ideology
between the People's Republic of China (PRC)
and the United States of America (US) continued.
While the US and the PRC reached a consensus on the issue
of climate change with the signing of the Paris Agreement
on September 3, topics like human rights, cyber security,
and maritime rights remained disputed. On January
30, a US Navy destroyer that patrolled within twelve nautical
miles of Triton Island in the Paracel Islands was condemned
by the PRC as provocative and in violation of international law
[→ China – Vietnam et al. (South China Sea)]. At the end of
April, the PRC denied a US warship, which had patrolled in the
South China Sea to run into the Hong Kong port. On May 10,
in reaction to the presence of a US navy destroyer close to
Fiery Cross Reef located in the disputed Spratly Islands, the
PRC scrambled two fighter jets and three warships. A week
later, the Pentagon criticized the interception of a US navy E-
P3 reconnaissance aircraft by two Chinese J-11 fighters east
of Hainan Island as an ''unsafe maneuver.” On May 18, the
US and the Philippines announced an agreement allowing US
military presence at Philippines bases, which the PRC viewed
as an act of ''cold war mentality.” On December 15, the PRC
seized a US naval drone in the South China Sea under diplomatic
protest for four days. Whereas the PRC regarded the
so-called US Freedom of Navigation Operations as a threat to
peace and stability, the US repeatedly criticized the PRC's increased
buildup of military infrastructure in the South China
Sea. The US demanded the PRC to abide by the award of the
Permanent Court of Arbitration issued on July 12. Previously,
on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit from March
31 to April 1 in the US capital Washington D.C., Chinese President
Xi Jinping called for respecting each other's core interests
while solving disputes. On October 24, the PRC admonished
the US to stop interfering in the China-India territorial
dispute, as the US ambassador to India visited the contested
region in the eastern sector of the Himalayas [→ China – India].
On July 7, the US Defense Department announced the agreement
with the Republic of Korea (ROK) to install a Terminal
High Altitude Area Defense anti-missile system in the ROK.
In response, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi criticized the
plan as a threat to the PRC's strategic security [→ North Korea
– South Korea, Japan, USA].
On December 2, US President-elect Donald Trump spoke with
the President of the Republic of China (RoC), Tsai Ing-wen,
which led to a diplomatic protest by the PRC [→ China (Taiwan)].
Tensions also continued regarding the issue of human
rights. On several occasions throughout the year, such as in
a joint statement on March 13 and at a press conference on
August 8, the US criticized the detainment of human rights
lawyers and activists as a violation of the principle of rule
of law. The PRC, on the other hand, criticized the US in mid-
April for its human rights record including, for instance, excessive
use of force by police and the violation of human rights
abroad. On June 15, US President Barack Obama met with the
Dalai Lama, which the PRC criticized as an encouragement for
separatist forces [→ China (Tibet)]. Regarding the PRC's advocacy
for internet sovereignty, in April the US labeled the PRC's
internet censorship a ''trade barrier.” rth
140
CHINA – VIETNAM ET AL. (SOUTH CHINA SEA)
Intensity: 3 | Change: | Start: 1949
Conflict parties: PRC vs. Vietnam vs. Brunei vs.
Malaysia vs. ROC vs. Philippines vs.
Indonesia
Conflict items: territory, international power, resources
The conflict over territory, resources, and international power
in the South China Sea (SCS) between Brunei, the People's
Republic of China (PRC) and the Republic of China (ROC),
Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam, as well as Indonesia
escalated to a violent level.
On January 2 and 6, the PRC conducted flight tests of civilian
aircrafts on the contested Fiery Cross Reef in the Spratly
Islands, leading to strong criticism by the Vietnamese and
Philippine governments. In the middle of February, satellite
images from ImageSat International showed that the PRC had
deployed eight surface-to-air missile launchers and a radar
system to Woody Island. From the mid-July, the PRC started
regular combat patrols around the contested Scarborough
Shoal and reportedly sent H-6 bombers and Su-30 fighter jets
to the Spratly Islands and Scarborough Shoal on August 6.
The PRC held several maritime military drills throughout the
year, including a military exercise from July 5 to 11 off the
coast of China's Hainan Island as well as in the area of Paracel
Islands. Between August 22 and 24, China's People's Liberation
Army Navy (PLAN) conducted a live-fire exercise in the
Gulf of Tonkin, off the cost of northern Vietnam. (Between
September 12 and 19, China held joint naval drills with Rus-