58
votes
Would Taiwan and China's dispute be solved if Taiwan gave up being the Republic of China?
No, dropping the ROC name makes the situation worse as the PRC claims that China is indivisible and that the island of Taiwan is part of China. Hence, the usual threat is that they will launch an ...
- 1,023
57
votes
Why are the territories gained by Israel in 1967 not internationally recognized?
The general philosophy of post-WWII international order is that the inhabitants of a territory are entitled to self-determination. While there are still many political and historical obstacles to the ...
- 16.2k
40
votes
What are some possible downsides about a one-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict?
In theory there could be a secular, multi-ethnic, multi-religious state.
In practice that is all but impossible.
After the Holocaust, many Jews vowed to live in their own state defended by their own ...
- 106k
30
votes
Why is Palestine not a state yet?
Why hasn't a country named Palestine been created yet?
As you alluded to in your summary, the nation of Israel was formed during WWII and it included land claimed by the Palestinians. Israel became ...
28
votes
Accepted
If Taiwan declares independence, would that mean they are relinquishing their claim over mainland China?
Let me first address the incorrect picture of the cross-strait relations that underlies your question.
You assume that there are actual, realistic claims to mainland China. Let me put this straight: ...
- 2,354
25
votes
Why is Palestine not a state yet?
Let's begin by repeating the definitions of de facto and de jure:
de facto: a) in fact, whether by right or not. b) existing or holding
a specified position in fact but not necessarily by legal right....
- 7,813
22
votes
Why is the town of Olivenza not as heavily politicized as other territorial disputes?
It is very difficult to look at a real world event, with the tons of factors influencing them, and to cathegorically decide which are the important ones, so any answer might be very opinated.
So I ...
- 31.2k
21
votes
Why are the territories gained by Israel in 1967 not internationally recognized?
It seems the Stimson doctrine was interpreted more general than you interpret it. The phrasing there just says 'result of aggression', and Israel clearly used aggression (as in military force) during ...
- 7,037
20
votes
Would it be possible for Russia to "unannex" parts of Ukraine?
Constitution changes
The current constitution seems to prohibit this, which implies that after this formal annexation any peace treaty other than a complete Russian victory would require a ...
- 5,619
19
votes
Would Taiwan and China's dispute be solved if Taiwan gave up being the Republic of China?
Interestingly, the name that China and Taiwan compromised on, for the Olympics at least, is "Chinese Taipei". In that context, China rejected the Republic of China (henceforth ROC) name, which Taiwan ...
- 145k
19
votes
What is the point of countries not recognizing the physical reality of who controls a certain territory?
Israel gained control of East Jerusalem and the West Bank during the six day war of 1967. This is why they achieved de facto control of Jerusalem. However, since WWII, conquest has largely come into ...
- 5,437
19
votes
Accepted
What is the point of countries not recognizing the physical reality of who controls a certain territory?
International law largely forbids wars of conquest or unilateral secessions. There is a lot of fudging and hypocrisy in this but no matter where you stand, you will find some territories effectively ...
- 30.5k
19
votes
Accepted
Why has China suddenly decided to station troops in the disputed Ladakh / Aksai Chin region?
This is hardly "coming out of nowhere"! There have been ongoing disputes between China and India since 1948, (and probably since 1948 BC!)
There are several claim lines between China and India, and a ...
- 115k
18
votes
Why are the territories gained by Israel in 1967 not internationally recognized?
Since the end of WW2 and the start of decolonization the international community has been quite reluctant on 2 directly related items:
Occupation of other countries' territories, i.e. colonization. ...
17
votes
Why didn't Russia annex Abkhazia and South Ossetia?
Because South Ossetia / Abkhazia haven't been willing (yet). In the Russian point of view, Russia doesn't "annex" states; it allows willing states to join the federation. That's why the ...
- 32.4k
15
votes
What is the point of countries not recognizing the physical reality of who controls a certain territory?
It is not about physical realities, but about political questions. In the frame of a possible two-state solution, the west of Jerusalem should be the capital of Israel and the east of Jerusalem should ...
- 3,814
14
votes
Would Taiwan and China's dispute be solved if Taiwan gave up being the Republic of China?
No, the real reason of the animosity from the People's Republic of China towards Taiwan does not involve the name or really even the practical consequences of an independent Taiwan. The real reason ...
- 2,534
14
votes
What are some possible downsides about a one-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict?
You have to understand what Zionism is about. It is about creating and
maintaining a Jewish state. According to Zionism, that requires Jews
to be the dominant ethnic group. Most Israeli Jews are ...
- 7,813
13
votes
Why is the town of Olivenza not as heavily politicized as other territorial disputes?
Maybe this is because public of Portugal does not believe that Spain is going to seriously infringe on the rights of this town citizens, so this becomes an administrative objection.
A similar example ...
- 13.9k
13
votes
Accepted
Why is Belize divided into two parts in this map?
&tldr; There is a territorial dispute between Guatemala and Belize pending at the International Court of Justice. Whether the map in question shows the territory claimed correctly is contentious.
...
- 6,073
12
votes
What is the CPC's intention behind expansionism?
From the Pacific Council on International Policy:
Since assuming power in 2012, President Xi Jinping has clearly articulated his vision of the “Chinese dream” which seeks to achieve the “great ...
- 15.1k
11
votes
What causes long-running disputes over sovereignty?
What reason would a country have for keeping these disputes open?
While I agree with Denis de Bernardy's reason for the origin of the conflict, I would think of it the other way around... what reason ...
- 31.2k
11
votes
Accepted
What is the position of the EU on Northern Cyprus?
The assumption that the EU is not doing anything about the occupation of one of its member states is incorrect. The EU's support of its member state is primarily in the diplomatic sphere, including ...
- 17.4k
11
votes
Why are the territories gained by Israel in 1967 not internationally recognized?
This is more of a postscript to Erwan's answer (which I believe is the most pertinent point).
As well as moral acceptability, there is the question of practicality. Prior to WWII most countries had ...
- 1,966
11
votes
Why is Belize divided into two parts in this map?
There's changelog for that that says (in 2022) "Added disputed territory". Guatemala has a border dispute with Belize, but I'm not sure exactly what that entails. TLDR.
There are some other ...
- 145k
9
votes
Why does India say that Kashmir is an integral and inseparable ('atoot ang') part, but then refuse to talk about Kashmir on an international level?
Probably because
The de facto border carved in 1949 worked to India’s territorial and political advantage.
The [1949] ceasefire line left the Indians with the bulk of Jammu and Kashmir’s territory (...
- 145k
9
votes
Why is Palestine not a state yet?
The State of Palestine has always existed, at least on paper. 136 UN member states (including two Security Council permanent members, Russia and China) and the Holy See recognize the State of ...
- 1,794
9
votes
What are some possible downsides about a one-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict?
I suspect that polling in the Palestinian territories is somewhat iffy to conduct, but what there is shows that there's little support for a (democratic) one-state solution among either of the ...
- 145k
9
votes
Accepted
Why doesn't India claim this portion of Kashmir?
I think I've found the answer in Chapter 7: The Disputed India–China
Boundary 1948–1960 of the book War and Peace in Modern India by Srinath Raghavan, although the following information can be found ...
- 191
7
votes
Accepted
Why is Palestine not a state yet?
Why hasn't a country named Palestine been created yet?
Because Israel (backed by the United States) is against it. Almost every other country is ready to recognize Palestine. However, a UN veto by ...
- 410
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