Disputes - international In 35 editions of 36.

part of southeastern region claimed by Libya; Algeria supports exiled West Saharan Polisario Front and rejects Moroccan administration of Western Sahara

none

claimed by Madagascar

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• delimitation of international boundaries in the vicinity of Lake Chad, the lack of which led to border incidents in the past, is complete and awaits ratification by Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria;
• tripartite maritime boundary and economic zone dispute with Equatorial Guinea and Nigeria is currently before the ICJ

none

delimitation of international boundaries in the vicinity of Lake Chad, the lack of which led to border incidents in the past, has been completed and awaits ratification by Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria

claims French-administered Mayotte; the island of Anjouan (Nzwani) has moved to secede from Comoros

• the Democratic Republic of the Congo is in the grip of a civil war that has drawn in military forces from neighboring states, with Uganda and Rwanda supporting the rebel movements that occupy much of the eastern portion of the state;
• most of the Congo river boundary with the Republic of the Congo is indefinite (no agreement has been reached on the division of the river or its islands, except in the Pool Malebo/Stanley Pool area)

most of the Congo river boundary with the Democratic Republic of the Congo is indefinite (no agreement has been reached on the division of the river or its islands, except in the Stanley Pool/Pool Malebo area)

none

none

Egypt asserts its claim to the "Hala'ib Triangle," a barren area of 20,580 sq km under partial Sudanese administration that is defined by an administrative boundary which supersedes the treaty boundary of 1899

• tripartite maritime boundary and economic zone dispute with Cameroon and Nigeria is currently before the ICJ;
• maritime boundary dispute with Gabon because of disputed sovereignty over islands in Corisco Bay

as a result of the 12 December 2000 peace agreement ending a two-year war with Ethiopia, the UN will administer a 25-km wide temporary security zone within Eritrea until a joint boundary commission delimits and demarcates a final boundary

Swaziland has asked South Africa to open negotiations on reincorporating some nearby South African territories that are populated by ethnic Swazis or that were long ago part of the Swazi Kingdom

• most of the southern half of the boundary with Somalia is a Provisional Administrative Line;
• as a result of the 12 December 2000 peace agreement ending a two year war with Eritrea, the UN will administer a 25-km wide temporary security zone within Eritrea until a joint boundary commission delimits and demarcates a final boundary;
• dispute over alignment of boundary with Eritrea led to armed conflict in 1998;
• a peace accord signed in December 2000 provides for UN-assisted arbitration and demarcation of the border

claimed by Madagascar

maritime boundary dispute with Equatorial Guinea because of disputed sovereignty over islands in Corisco Bay

none

none

claimed by Madagascar

• border incursions by Revolutionary United Front combatants from Sierra Leone;
• civil war in that country has engendered a massive flow of refugees to southern Guinea and Liberia

none

claimed by Madagascar

administrative boundary with Sudan does not coincide with international boundary

none

large refugee population from civil war in Sierra Leone

Libya claims about 19,400 sq km in northern Niger and also a part of southeastern Algeria

claims Bassas da India, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, Juan de Nova Island, and Tromelin Island (all administered by France)

dispute with Tanzania over the boundary in Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi)

none

none

claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory); claims French-administered Tromelin Island

claimed by Comoros

• claims and administers Western Sahara, but sovereignty is unresolved and the UN is attempting to hold a referendum on the issue;
• the UN-administered cease-fire has been in effect since September 1991;
• Spain controls five places of sovereignty (plazas de soberania) on and off the coast of Morocco - the coastal enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla which Morocco contests, as well as the islands of Penon de Alhucemas, Penon de Velez de la Gomera, and Islas Chafarinas

none

none

• Libya claims about 19,400 sq km in northern Niger;
• delimitation of international boundaries in the vicinity of Lake Chad, the lack of which led to border incidents in the past, has been completed and awaits ratification by Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria

• delimitation of international boundaries in the vicinity of Lake Chad, the lack of which led to border incidents in the past, has been completed and awaits ratification by Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria;
• dispute with Cameroon over land and maritime boundaries around the Bakasi Peninsula is currently before the ICJ;
• tripartite maritime boundary and economic zone dispute with Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon is currently before the ICJ

none

Rwandan military forces are supporting the rebel forces in the civil war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

none

none

none

claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory)

civil war has engendered massive refugee movements into neighboring Guinea and Liberia

most of the southern half of the boundary with Ethiopia is a Provisional Administrative Line; territorial dispute with Ethiopia over the Ogaden

Swaziland has asked South Africa to open negotiations on reincorporating some nearby South African territories that are populated by ethnic Swazis or that were long ago part of the Swazi Kingdom

• administrative boundary with Kenya does not coincide with international boundary;
• Egypt asserts its claim to the "Hala'ib Triangle," a barren area of 20,580 sq km under partial Sudanese administration that is defined by an administrative boundary which supersedes the treaty boundary of 1899

• dispute with Malawi over the boundary in Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi);
• a resurvey of the latitudinal boundary with Uganda in 2000 revealed a 300-meter discrepancy that both sides are currently adjudicating

none

claimed by Madagascar and Mauritius

none

• the Ugandan military is deployed to the Democratic Republic of Congo in support of rebel forces in that country's civil war;
• a resurvey of the latitudinal boundary with Tanzania in 2000 revealed a 300-meter discrepancy that both sides are currently adjudicating

• claimed and administered by Morocco, but sovereignty is unresolved and the UN is attempting to hold a referendum on the issue;
• the UN-administered cease-fire has been in effect since September 1991

• Antarctic Treaty freezes claims (see Antarctic Treaty Summary in Government type entry);
• sections (some overlapping) claimed by Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, New Zealand, Norway, and UK;
• the US and most other nations do not recognize the territorial claims of other nations and have made no claims themselves (the US and Russia reserve the right to do so);
• no claims have been made in the sector between 90 degrees west and 150 degrees west

none

"Adelie Land" claim in Antarctica is not recognized by the US

none

claimed by Argentina

none

• Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Denmark and the UK (Ireland and the UK have signed a boundary agreement in the Rockall area);
• dispute with Denmark over the Faroe Islands fisheries median line boundary within 200 NM;
• disputes with Denmark, the UK, and Ireland over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 NM

none

focus of a maritime boundary dispute between Norway and Russia

support to Islamic militants worldwide by some factions; question over which group should hold Afghanistan's seat at the UN

• Armenia supports ethnic Armenians in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan in the longstanding, separatist conflict against the Azerbaijani Government;
• traditional demands regarding former Armenian lands in Turkey have subsided

• Armenia supports ethnic Armenians in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan in the longstanding, separatist conflict against the Azerbaijani Government;
• Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan

• a portion of the boundary with India is indefinite;
• exchange of 151 enclaves along border with India subject to ratification by Indian parliament;
• dispute with India over South Talpatty/New Moore Island

refugee issue over the presence in Nepal of approximately 98,700 Bhutanese refugees, 90% of whom are in seven United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) camps

the Chagos Archipelago is claimed by Mauritius and Seychelles

• most of boundary with India in dispute;
• dispute over at least two small sections of the boundary with Russia remains to be settled, despite 1997 boundary agreement;
• portions of the boundary with Tajikistan are indefinite;
• 33-km section of boundary with North Korea in the Paektu-san (mountain) area is indefinite;
• involved in a complex dispute over the Spratly Islands with Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, and possibly Brunei;
• maritime boundary agreement with Vietnam in the Gulf of Tonkin awaits ratification;
• Paracel Islands occupied by China, but claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan;
• claims Japanese-administered Senkaku-shoto (Senkaku Islands/Diaoyu Tai), as does Taiwan

none

• boundary with China in dispute;
• status of Kashmir with Pakistan;
• water-sharing problems with Pakistan over the Indus River (Wular Barrage);
• a portion of the boundary with Bangladesh is indefinite;
• exchange of 151 enclaves along border with Bangladesh subject to ratification by Indian parliament;
• dispute with Bangladesh over New Moore/South Talpatty Island

• islands of Etorofu, Kunashiri, and Shikotan, and the Habomai group occupied by the Soviet Union in 1945, now administered by Russia, claimed by Japan;
• Liancourt Rocks (Takeshima/Tokdo) disputed with South Korea;
• Senkaku-shoto (Senkaku Islands) claimed by China and Taiwan

Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan

33-km section of boundary with China in the Paektu-san (mountain) area is indefinite; Demarcation Line with South Korea

Demarcation Line with North Korea; Liancourt Rocks (Takeshima/Tokdo) disputed with Japan

• territorial dispute with Tajikistan on southwestern boundary in Isfara Valley area;
• periodic target of Islamic insurgents from Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Afghanistan

none

none

refugee issue over the presence in Nepal of approximately 98,700 Bhutanese refugees, 90% of whom are in seven United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) camps

status of Kashmir with India; water-sharing problems with India over the Indus River (Wular Barrage)

• dispute over at least two small sections of the boundary with China remains to be settled, despite 1997 boundary agreement;
• islands of Etorofu, Kunashiri, and Shikotan and the Habomai group occupied by the Soviet Union in 1945, now administered by Russia, claimed by Japan;
• Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan;
• Estonian and Russian negotiators reached a technical border agreement in December 1996, which has not been signed or ratified by Russia as of February 2001;
• draft treaty delimiting the boundary with Latvia has not been signed;
• 1997 border agreement with Lithuania not yet ratified;
• has made no territorial claim in Antarctica (but has reserved the right to do so) and does not recognize the claims of any other nation;
• Svalbard is the focus of a maritime boundary dispute between Norway and Russia

none

• portions of Tajikistan's northern and western border with Uzbekistan and its eastern border with China have not been officially demarcated;
• territorial dispute with Kyrgyzstan on northern boundary in Isfara Valley area

Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan

occasional target of Islamic insurgents based in Tajikistan and Afghanistan

none

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• Guatemala periodically asserts claims to territory in southern Belize;
• to deter cross-border squatting, both states in 2000 agreed to a "line of adjacency" based on the de facto boundary, which is not recognized by Guatemala

none

none

legal dispute over navigational rights of Rio San Juan on border with Nicaragua

US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay is leased to US and only mutual agreement or US abandonment of the area can terminate the lease

none

none

with respect to the maritime boundary in the Golfo de Fonseca, the ICJ referred to the line determined by the 1900 Honduras-Nicaragua Mixed Boundary Commission and advised that some tripartite resolution among El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua likely would be required

none

none

• Guatemala periodically asserts claims to territory in southern Belize;
• to deter cross-border squatting, both states in 2000 agreed to a "line of adjacency" based on the de facto boundary, which is not recognized by Guatemala

claims US-administered Navassa Island

• with respect to the maritime boundary in the Golfo de Fonseca, the ICJ referred to the line determined by the 1900 Honduras-Nicaragua Mixed Boundary Commission and advised that some tripartite resolution among El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua likely would be required;
• the maritime boundary dispute with Nicaragua in the Caribbean Sea is before the ICJ

none

none

none

claimed by Haiti

none

• territorial disputes with Colombia over the Archipelago de San Andres y Providencia and Quita Sueno Bank;
• with respect to the maritime boundary question in the Golfo de Fonseca, the ICJ referred to the line determined by the 1900 Honduras-Nicaragua Mixed Boundary Commission and advised that some tripartite resolution among El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua likely would be required;
• maritime boundary dispute with Honduras in the Caribbean Sea is before the ICJ;
• legal dispute over navigational rights of San Juan River on border with Costa Rica

none

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• the Albanian Government supports protection of the rights of ethnic Albanians outside of its borders but has downplayed them to further its primary foreign policy goal of regional cooperation;
• Albanian majority in Kosovo seeks independence from Yugoslavia;
• Albanians in The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia claim discrimination in education, access to public-sector jobs, and representation in government

none

minor disputes with Czech Republic and Slovenia over nuclear power plants and post-World War II treatment of German-speaking minorities

none

none

none

• Croatia and Italy made progress toward resolving a bilateral issue dating from World War II over property and ethnic minority rights;
• progress with Slovenia on discussions of adjustments to land boundary, but problems remain in defining maritime boundary in Gulf of Piran;
• Croatia and Yugoslavia are negotiating the status of the strategically important Prevlaka Peninsula, which is currently under a UN military observer mission (UNMOP)

• Liechtenstein's royal family claims restitution for 1,600 sq km of land in the Czech Republic confiscated in 1918;
• individual Sudeten German claims for restitution of property confiscated in connection with their expulsion after World War II;
• Austria has minor dispute with Czech Republic over nuclear power plants and post-World War II treatment of German-speaking minorities

• Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Iceland and the UK (Ireland and the UK have signed a boundary agreement in the Rockall area);
• dispute with Iceland over the Faroe Islands fisheries median line boundary within 200 NM;
• disputes with Iceland, the UK, and Ireland over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 NM

Estonian and Russian negotiators reached a technical border agreement in December 1996 which has not been signed nor ratified by Russia as of February 2001

Faroese are considering proposals for full independence

none

• Madagascar claims Bassas da India, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, Juan de Nova Island, and Tromelin Island;
• Comoros claims Mayotte;
• Mauritius claims Tromelin Island;
• territorial dispute between Suriname and French Guiana;
• territorial claim in Antarctica (Adelie Land);
• Matthew and Hunter Islands east of New Caledonia claimed by France and Vanuatu

none

source of friction between Spain and the UK

• complex maritime, air, and territorial disputes with Turkey in Aegean Sea;
• Cyprus question with Turkey;
• dispute with The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia over its name

none

none

Gabcikovo/Nagymaros Dam dispute with Slovakia is before the ICJ

• Northern Ireland issue with the UK (historic peace agreement signed 10 April 1998);
• disputes with Iceland, Denmark, and the UK over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 NM

none

Croatia and Italy made progress toward resolving a bilateral issue dating from World War II over property and ethnic minority rights

none

• draft treaty delimiting the boundary with Russia has not been signed;
• has not ratified 1998 maritime boundary agreement with Lithuania (primary concern is oil exploration rights)

Liechtenstein's royal family claims restitution for 1,600 sq km of land in the Czech Republic confiscated in 1918

• Latvia has not ratified a 1998 maritime boundary agreement with Lithuania (primary concern is oil exploration rights);
• 1997 border agreement with Russia not yet ratified by Russia

none

none

• separatist Transnistria region,
• comprising the area between the Nistru (Dniester) River and Ukraine,
• has its own de facto government,
• dominated by Moldovan Slavs

none

none

dispute with Greece over its name; February 2001 agreement with Yugoslavia settled alignment of boundary, stipulating implementation within two years

territorial claim in Antarctica (Queen Maud Land); Svalbard is the focus of a maritime boundary dispute between Norway and Russia

none

none

none

• Albanian majority in Kosovo seeks independence from Yugoslavia;
• Croatia and Yugoslavia are negotiating the status of the strategically important Prevlaka Peninsula, which is currently under a UN military observer mission (UNMOP);
• the February 2001 agreement with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia settled alignment of boundary, stipulating implementation within two years

Gabcikovo/Nagymaros Dam dispute with Hungary is before the ICJ

• progress with Croatia on discussions of adjustments to land boundary, but problems remain in defining maritime boundary in Gulf of Piran;
• Austria has minor dispute with Slovenia over nuclear power plants and post-World War II treatment of German-speaking minorities

Gibraltar issue with UK; Spain controls five places of sovereignty (plazas de soberania) on and off the coast of Morocco - the coastal enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla, which Morocco contests, as well as the islands of Penon de Alhucemas, Penon de Velez de la Gomera, and Islas Chafarinas

none

none

has made no territorial claim in Antarctica (but has reserved the right to do so) and does not recognize the claims of any other nation

• Northern Ireland issue with Ireland (historic peace agreement signed 10 April 1998);
• Gibraltar issue with Spain;
• Argentina claims Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas);
• Argentina claims South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands;
• Mauritius and the Seychelles claim Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory);
• Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Denmark and Iceland;
• territorial claim in Antarctica (British Antarctic Territory) overlaps Argentine claim and partially overlaps Chilean claim;
• disputes with Iceland, Denmark, and Ireland over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 NM

in March of 2001, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) awarded the Hawar Islands to Bahrain and also adjusted Bahrain's maritime boundary with Qatar

• 1974 hostilities divided the island into two de facto autonomous areas, a Greek Cypriot area controlled by the internationally recognized Cypriot Government (59% of the island's land area) and a Turkish-Cypriot area (37% of the island), that are separated by a UN buffer zone (4% of the island);
• there are two UK sovereign base areas mostly within the Greek Cypriot portion of the island

West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation

• Iran and Iraq restored diplomatic relations in 1990 but are still trying to work out written agreements settling outstanding disputes from their eight-year war concerning border demarcation, prisoners-of-war, and freedom of navigation and sovereignty over the Shatt al Arab waterway;
• Iran occupies two islands in the Persian Gulf claimed by the UAE: Lesser Tunb (called Tunb as Sughra in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Kuchek in Persian by Iran) and Greater Tunb (called Tunb al Kubra in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Bozorg in Persian by Iran);
• Iran jointly administers with the UAE an island in the Persian Gulf claimed by the UAE (called Abu Musa in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Abu Musa in Persian by Iran) - over which Iran has taken steps to exert unilateral control since 1992, including access restrictions and a military build-up on the island;
• the UAE has garnered significant diplomatic support in the region in protesting these Iranian actions;
• Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan

• Iran and Iraq restored diplomatic relations in 1990 but are still trying to work out written agreements settling outstanding disputes from their eight-year war concerning border demarcation, prisoners-of-war, and freedom of navigation and sovereignty over the Shatt al Arab waterway;
• in November 1994, Iraq formally accepted the UN-demarcated border with Kuwait which had been spelled out in Security Council Resolutions 687 (1991), 773 (1993), and 883 (1993);
• this formally ends earlier claims to Kuwait and to Bubiyan and Warbah islands although the government continues periodic rhetorical challenges;
• dispute over water development plans by Turkey for the Tigris and Euphrates rivers

• West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation;
• Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied (Lebanon claims the Shab'a Farms area of Golan Heights)

none

• in November 1994, Iraq formally accepted the UN-demarcated border with Kuwait which had been spelled out in Security Council Resolutions 687 (1991), 773 (1993), and 883 (1993);
• this formally ends earlier claims to Kuwait and to Bubiyan and Warbah islands

• Syrian troops in northern, central, and eastern Lebanon since October 1976;
• Lebanese government claims Shab'a Farms area of Israeli-occupied Golan Heights as a part of Lebanon from which Hizballah conducts cross-border attacks