Deterrance!

CHINA AND INDIA
Conflict over border/territory

Overview:
India gained independence from Britain in 1947. However border with China was not clearly defined as the Himalayas mountain range made it hard to clearly define a border between both countries.

1950: China began to contest the presence of India in several localities, among which were the Aksai-Chin Plateau as well as the North East Frontier Agency.

1958: China announced that it has constructed a road to the Aksai-Chin Plateau. India protested against this as India felt that the Aksai-Chin Plateau belonged to them, and China had nothing to do with it.

1959: Fighting broke out between the two sides at both the Aksai-Chin Plateau as well as the North East Frontier Agency.

1961: In the middle of the year, China occupied even more territories which India regarded as its own. India demanded that China return the territories but China refused.

1962: A short war broke out between India and China, but both sides stopped fighting in a short period of time. However, the issue with the border is still not yet resolved.


ICELAND AND BRITAIN
Conflict over scarce resources

Overview:
Iceland has scarce natural resources, and relies on fishing for survival – 79% of Iceland’s exports were fresh fish/fish-based products. Due to overfishing by Britain, Germany and Belgium, fish stocks fell by 1/3 in Iceland seas. Iceland suggested ways to regulate fishing to the UN Conference on the Law of the Sea; however most suggestions were ignored.

1975: In October, Iceland extended its zone of control from 50 to 200 nautical miles, Germany and Belgium complied with this new zone; however Britain refused to acknowledge this.

In November, frequent collisions with British frigates and Iceland’s Coast-Guard occurred, and both sides blamed each other for the collisions.

1976: In February, Iceland cut off diplomatic ties with Britain.
In June, British signed an agreement with Ireland with certain terms to be implemented:

1. British was allowed to catch a fixed amount of fish
2. Maximum of 24 trawlers allowed within the 200-nautical mile zone at any time
3. Icelandic patrols were allowed to stop any trawlers suspected of overfishing
4. This would last for 6 months before Britain could not fish there anymore


KOREA
Conflict over ideology

Overview:
On August 1945, Japan surrendered at the end of World War II. Korea was divided by the 38th parallel (38th latitude), and the North was occupied by the USSR; the south by the US.

1947: UN called for an election to unify Korea under a single government; the USSR refused and instead established the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, and made North Korea a communist country.

1948: South Korea however complied with the elections, and the Republic of Korea was formed with democracy as the ideology.

1949: Both the US and USSR pulled out from Korea, and both North and South Korea claimed the right to rule Korea, and thus frequent border clashes occurred.

1950: Start of the Korean War, with the US and her allies as well as the UN taking the side of South Korea, and with USSR and China siding with North Korea.

1953: End of the Korean War when both sides agreed to stop fighting. A demilitarized zone was created between both Koreas, where no military presence was to be allowed or such an incident might escalate back into war.

CA1 incoming! I don't know why I bother with this. For fun, maybe.

[Marcus]