88
votes
Accepted
What are the primary objections Democrats have to a border wall?
It's not clear to me that Democrats are opposed to border-wall construction (your one source suggests they are fine with border walls/fences where necessary), so much as they opposed to some of the ...
- 3,007
57
votes
Accepted
Why is China interested in Socotra Rock?
The Chinese government has spent the last decade and more very actively pursuing the extension of their territorial waters into what is commonly accepted to be international waters, or even the ...
- 2,854
53
votes
Is there anything like Schengen area anywhere else in the world?
Central America-4 Border Control Agreement is probably an example of what you are searching for.
Is a treaty between 4 Central American countries that allows the free movement across borders. They ...
- 782
46
votes
Unclaimed pieces of land
There is indeed a small patch of land between Egypt and Sudan not claimed by any country: Bir Tawil. It is essentially a patch of desert in the middle of nowhere with no inhabitants, no infrastructure ...
- 72.4k
46
votes
What is the evidence that customs checks in Northern Ireland are going to result in violence?
New here, but there's a misconception in your question. The worry over the border isn't about some trade disputes and companies turning ugly over tariffs; this is about the establishment of any ...
- 610
41
votes
Can a country block its airspace to international civil flights without any reason?
Yes, overflight is a privilege, not a right. A denial might cause the victims to retaliate in a similar manner, by restricting overflights or other things which are not a right. These are for example ...
- 100k
36
votes
Why does there not seem to be more support for state-specific border walls in the US?
It is essentially not allowed.
States may not usurp the federal power over immigration. State attempts to regulate concurrently in a field already occupied by a federal statute have been struck ...
- 2,484
36
votes
What explanation do proponents of a Scotland-NI bridge give for it breaking Brexit impasse?
The "border in the Irish Sea" refers to a regulatory border, namely a customs border, that would require customs inspections of vehicles traveling between Northern Ireland and rest of the United ...
- 16.7k
35
votes
Unclaimed pieces of land
On the border between Croatia and Serbia, near the border with Hungary, there's a small (7 km2), uninhabited area called Siga which is claimed by neither Croatia nor Serbia, though it's under control ...
- 3,222
30
votes
Accepted
Why does there not seem to be more support for state-specific border walls in the US?
In addition to the issue David S identifies:
Cost. Texas has a state budget that runs about $108B/year. Cost estimates for a border wall vary a lot, but the most recent request to Congress from the ...
- 2,523
29
votes
Accepted
What explanation do proponents of a Scotland-NI bridge give for it breaking Brexit impasse?
I'm not sure the DUP has actually said something like that. Channel4 may have misinterpreted the following not-so-recent statement of Paul Girvan, MP for South Antrim and DUP transport spokesperson:
...
- 131k
29
votes
Accepted
Can a country block its airspace to international civil flights without any reason?
It depends - if country 'Y' is one of the 134 parties to the International Air Services Transit Agreement, then the first article of that agreement grants scheduled air flights the privilege to fly ...
CDJB♦
- 97.1k
28
votes
Accepted
Why is having border controls in Ireland so problematic for Irish nationalists?
For Irish Nationalists, the Irish state is composed of all 32 counties on the island of Ireland. The nationalist view is that 6 of these are currently occupied by the British (see Why don't Sinn F&...
- 108k
28
votes
Accepted
Is French Guiana a (hard) EU border?
Customs in French Guiana
Yes, it is an external border for the purpose of EU common external customs tariffs. According to the EU's page on Territorial status of EU countries and certain territories
...
JJJ♦
- 38.8k
28
votes
Why are passengers inspected so thoroughly for drugs when most drugs enter through ports and the majority of shipping containers aren't controlled?
Passengers are not routinely screened for drugs
Normal passenger screening is to detect explosives and weapons, not drugs. That said, if you have two slabs of cocaine in your carry on, the x-ray ...
- 919
27
votes
Why wasn't Point Roberts given an exception to the Canada-US border closure?
This Q has it backwards, the economy of Point Roberts collapsed because Canadians couldn't travel to Point Roberts, not because Point Roberts residents could not travel to Canada... Apparently a lot ...
- 131k
26
votes
Why hasn't Kamala Harris visited the US-Mexico Border?
This question, or something similar, has been put to White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki a number of times over the past couple of months. The common theme of the responses is that VP Harris' brief ...
CDJB♦
- 97.1k
25
votes
Is there anything like Schengen area anywhere else in the world?
Common Travel Area
United Kingdom, Ireland, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islands.
CARICOM
Not quite sure if it is "no stamps" or "no checks."
GCC
Not quite sure if it is "...
- 100k
25
votes
Accepted
Why don't countries agree to make Air Defence Identification Zones (ADIZ) binding?
You're mentioning the US stance on this but generally speaking the US is not so high on reciprocity and they have enough clout to demand or get away with things they wouldn't tolerate, from access to ...
- 30.2k
24
votes
What are the primary objections Democrats have to a border wall?
As a Democrat, here are some of my objections:
Mexico is not paying for it.
He promised they would; now he is demanding funds from Congress (tax-dollars).
It is Impractical
At estimates around $25 ...
- 2,552
24
votes
To what degree were families separated in the US - Mexico border before Trump?
Previous administrations, and the Trump administration until a few months ago, had a policy where only some people caught crossing the border illegally would be subjected to criminal prosecution (like ...
- 8,741
22
votes
Accepted
Will there be a border between Ireland and the UK if they can't agree on a deal?
It is not WTO rules which require a hard border, it is regulatory divergence.
There will be a border in any scenario short of Irish unification. The Good Friday agreement says that it will be a soft ...
- 100k
22
votes
Accepted
Is the EU Border Guard Agency able to tell Russian passports issued in Ukraine or Georgia from the legitimate ones?
It does not matter.
While I am not privy to the technical details of passport processing, my guess is that the answer to your stated question is 'NO'. After all, we are not talking about counterfeits ...
- 30.2k
21
votes
Why is redrawing the artificial borders not a viable solution to conflicted states?
Because trying to redraw the border would just start the next round of wars.
Most ethnic groups overlap their neighbors -- especially when countries have large capitals or ports that attract people ...
- 6,723
21
votes
How is the excise border managed in Ireland?
The UK and Ireland are both part of the EU Single Market and the Common Travel Area. Hence there is no excise duty on goods crossing the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, ...
- 19.3k
19
votes
Unclaimed pieces of land
Both Glorfindel and Philipp give examples of unclaimed lands (Siga and Bir Tawil). These types of land are called "terra nullius" and are often sparsely populated and lack mineral resources. Today ...
- 747
19
votes
Accepted
Is there a radar system monitoring the UK sea borders?
Through Her Majesty's Coastguard, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency operates some vessels that have radar. Its vessels range from rigid-hulled inflatable boats to five cutters it claims are operated ...
- 5,096
19
votes
Have issues surrounding the Northern Ireland border been resolved?
The Irish Border issue has been temporarily resolved to the point at which the negotiations can proceed.
When she was negotiating May described creating a border down the Irish Sea as something that ...
- 17.6k
19
votes
Why don't countries agree to make Air Defence Identification Zones (ADIZ) binding?
The ADIZ is simply a unilaterally established set of procedures followed by one country's air defense forces, and does not have to be "accepted" by other countries if they are prepared to ...
- 30.8k
18
votes
Accepted
How could Philadelphia join New Jersey?
Precedent suggests that this would require Pennsylvania and New Jersey to consent, with the approval of Congress; Philadelphia would have absolutely no legal say in the matter, although it would be ...
- 13.7k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible