Editing Territorial dispute (section)

==Context and definitions==
Territorial disputes are often related to the possession of [[natural resource]]s such as [[river]]s, fertile farmland, [[mineral]] or [[petroleum]] resources although the disputes can also be driven by [[culture]], [[religion]], and [[ethnic nationalism]]. Territorial disputes often result from vague and unclear language in a treaty that set up the original boundary.

Territorial disputes are a major cause of [[war]]s and [[terrorism]], as states often try to assert their [[sovereignty]] over a territory through invasion, and non-state entities try to influence the actions of politicians through terrorism. International law does not support the [[Use of force in international law|use of force]] by one state to annex the territory of another state. The [https://www.un.org/en/sections/un-charter/chapter-i/index.html UN Charter] states, "All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the Purposes of the United Nations."

In some cases in which the boundary is not demarcated, such as the [[Taiwan Strait]], and [[Kashmir]], the parties involved define a [[Line of Control]], which serves as the ''de facto'' international border.

{{Anchor|Border conflict}}

*The term ''border dispute'' (or ''border conflict'') applies to cases in which a limited territory is disputed by two or more states, each contending state would publish its own maps to include the same region which would invariably lie along or adjacent to the recognised borders of the competing states, such as the [[Abyei]] region which is contested between [[South Sudan]] and the [[Sudan]]. With border conflicts, the existence of the rival state is not being challenged, such as the relationship between the [[China|People's Republic of China]] and the [[Taiwan|Republic of China]] or the relationship between [[North Korea]] and [[South Korea]], but each state recognises the shape of the rival state only as not containing the claimed territory, in spite of who actually governs the land and how it is recognised in the international community.
*An [[military occupation|occupied territory]], in general, is a region distinct from the recognized territory of the sovereign states but which the occupying state controls, usually with military forces. Sometimes, a long-term occupation is maintained as a means to act upon a territorial claim, but an occupation may also be strategic (such as creating a [[buffer zone]] or preventing a rival power obtaining control) or a means of coercion (such as a punishment, to impose some internal measures or for use as a bargaining chip).
*The term ''[[irredentism]]'' applies to border disputes but also to wider territorial claims:
*#[[File:Poster regarding Japan's Northern Territories on public display in Sapporo, 2012.jpg|thumb|360x360px|A Japanese poster calling for the return of the [[Kuril Islands dispute|Northern Territories]] from Russian administration]]If a nation emerges when declaring independence from a larger state, its ultimate recognition may not always grant the new state control over the territory it proposed as part of the declaration. Those lands remain ''unredeemed territory'' in the eyes of nationalist movements from the state but do not otherwise cause a problem between the governments on each side of the border.
*#In cases that territory was achieved through historical conquests such as an empire, traditionalists may view former colonies as unredeemed territory.