Models for the settlement of territorial conflicts

Abstract

The article presents the materials of a round table held at the National Research Institute for the Communications Development (Moscow, Russia), the main topic of which was the experience of resolving territorial conflicts.

A wide range of issues related to the theory and practice of crisis resolution practices is considered. The main political and legal approaches and diplomatic instruments to international mediation in the settlement of territorial conflicts are characterized. The results of the study of the historical experience of international mediation in the settlement of territorial conflicts are presented. A data-based methodology is proposed that allows evaluate information sources covering the conflict.

The conflicts in Central Asia and the Caucasus that took place in different periods are considered. Territorial conflicts are numerous in the Central Asian region. They are mainly related to the absence of official state borders between the three countries: Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan. The most complex, large-scale, and bloody is the conflict between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan in 2021, which was supported by the armed forces of the two countries. Negotiations, delimitation, and demarcation of borders are still the most significant alternative to existing conflicts.

The tools for managing these events are highlighted. A set of recommendations is proposed that has scientific and practical significance in terms of anti-crisis response strategies in the post-Soviet space.