It has been over a month since Indian and Chinese forces have been on the edge over the tri-junction -India, China and Bhutan- dispute at Sikkim border. The conflict started with China's attempt to construct a road through Dokalam area which was opposed by Indian troops.
Now, China wants India to withdraw its forces from the area, but the area in strategically important to New Delhi. It cannot afford to allow Beijing to change the status-quo.
China has refused to start a dialogue with the Indian government unless it pulls its armed forces out of Dokalam area. Given the tough stand that both the countries have taken so far, it seems that the current face-off between two Asian giants could last for a while. India isn't the only country that China is engaged in at the border, it has a history of getting into conflict between its neighbouring countries.
According to the journal Council on Foreign Relations, China claims roughly 90 percent of the South China Sea as its exclusive economic zone. The Council in its report referred to a US Geological Survey which estimated that the South China Sea contains as much as 290 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and also accounts for about one-tenth of the entire annual global fish catch.
China's Geological Resources and Mining ministry estimated that the South China Sea may contain 17.7 billion tons of crude oil which is higher than that of Kuwait's 13 billion tons. The area is also important because, by some account, more than half the world's crude oil transported by sea passes through the South China Sea. Here are the main disputes:
China vs Japan: The Senkaku Islands are at the midst of dispute between China and Japan. The Senkaku Islands are located in the East China Sea between Japan, China, and the Taiwan. The Senkaku Islands dispute concerns a territorial conflict over a group of uninhabited islands known as the Senkaku Islands in Japan, the Diaoyu Islands in China, and Tiaoyutai Islands in the Taiwan. According to Korean academic Lee Seokwoo, it was only in the the latter half of 1970 when China started mulling over the the question of sovereignty over the islands after evidence related to the existence of oil reserves surfaced.
The matter became worse in 2012 when the Japanese government purchased three of the disputed islands from their private owner which prompted large-scale protests in China. Reacting to Japan's move, China set up the East China Sea Air Defense Identification Zone which included the Senkaku Islands. China also announced that it would require all aircraft entering the zone to file a flight plan and submit radio frequency or transponder information.
The United States Department has made it clear that it does not have any official position on the merits of the competing sovereignty claims. However, the US will have to come to Japan's aid if conflict escalates as it is bound to provide security to Japan under the 1960 Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security between the United States and Japan. Top US government officials declared on multiple occasion that the islands fall under the 1960 Treaty between the United States and Japan which requires the US to assist Japan in defending the Senkaku islands if anyone attempts to control Japan-administered Islands.
China vs Philippines: Philippines dragged China to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea or UNCLOS over China's "nine-dotted line" claim. The nine-dotted line claim refers to the demarcation line used initially by China and Taiwan for their claims of the major part of the South China Sea.
The contested area in the South China Sea includes the Paracel Islands, the Spratly Islands, and various other areas including the Pratas Islands, the Maccles field Bank and the Scarborough Shoal. China, however, refused to participate in the arbitration case. Earlier in 2016, the tribunal ruled in favor of the Philippines saying that China has "no historical rights" based on the nine-dash line. China, however, rejected the Tribunal's ruling.
China vs Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia: China and Vietnam fought their first long-drawn border war from 1979 to 1990. But after that they worked to improve their diplomatic ties. However, the two countries remain in dispute over territorial issues in the South China Sea. At the center of territorial conflict is Spratly Islands and Paracel Islands. The Philippines, Malaysia and other countries have also claimed the region in Spratly Islands. In one such development, former Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos in 1978 issued Presidential decree No 1596, declaring the north-western part of the Spratly Islands as Philippine territory.