Borderlands - Geographical Flash Points

In his book “The Next 100 Years”, George Friedman presents the concept of borderlands.  A borderland is a region that lies between two or more countries that have legitimate ethnic, religious, geographic, or historical claims to sovereignty over it. 

Borderlands are important because of the tension created when multiple countries compete for influence over them.  These tensions have contributed to some of the most famous wars in history.  Examples of some famous borderlands are Alsace-Lorraine between France and Germany and Kashmir between Pakistan, India, and China. 

Alsace-Lorraine:

Alsace-Lorraine has been a catalyst for multiple Franco-German wars, including WW1 and WW2.  It is the province that lines the border between France and Germany in Western Europe.  Geographically, it is on the west (French) banks of the Rhine River.  Ethnically, it is mixed with the majority belonging to Alsatians, who are a Germanic tribe.  It also has a long history of belonging to various French Kingdoms or German Reich’s and switched between France and Germany four times between 1870 and 1945 alone.

Kashmir:

Located mainly in the Himalayas where the borders of India, China, and Pakistan intersect, Kashmir is a borderland whose ownership has yet to be resolved.  Primarily Muslim, the residents of Kashmir have a deep affinity with Pakistan.  The conflict comes because Kashmir has historically been a Muslim princedom as a part of India.  Parts of the region have also been ruled by Tibet, which is now under Chinese control.  It is also located in the Himalaya Mountains.  This makes that territory key to the defense of all three countries.  In the past fifty years, multiple wars have been fought between all three countries over control of this territory.  These conflicts are currently unresolved with only Pakistan and China coming to an agreement on the borders (which India disputes). 

Conclusion:

The concept of a borderland is important to understand because there are several borderlands in existence in the world today.  Each has the potential to cause conflicts between its neighbors.  I will be investigating each of these borderlands in detail in future posts.