Territorial dispute refers to any type of conflict over sovereignty over territory. In some instances, such disputes become a source of violent international conflict.
The process by which a territorial dispute develops varies, depending on the context and specific state involved. In some cases, such disputes are settled without the use of military force. This type of territorial dispute is typically referred to as “peaceful.” The process by which a territorial dispute escalates into a more serious conflict – one that includes the threat or use of military force – is referred to as an “armed” dispute.
Many studies suggest that territorial disputes tend to escalate due to a change in relative state strength, with the stronger revisionist state in position to press its claims. However, this view may be overly simplistic. A number of other processes could influence the likelihood and severity of a militarized territorial dispute, such as economic factors such as access to natural resources, and the presence or absence of democratic regimes.
A key problem in the study of territorial conflict is the lack of a clear conceptual and operational definition for this category of dispute. The most prominent studies use a variety of criteria to determine whether a particular dispute should be included within the definition, but none of these approaches is perfect. Some studies exclude maritime boundary disputes unless they involve contentious territorial claims, and others only include those disputed territories that appear to have been resolved in some way.