Sino-Indian war of 1962 : a framework and case study of international conflict resolution
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Since time immemorial history has recorded man's efforts to avoid war and maintain peace. War is defined as, "a violent contact of distinct but similar entities." Attempt after attempt has been made to end or limit wars, yet war has always been a dominant element of human life. Quincy Wright lists 3,000 battles which involved casualties in the course of modern history. Thus modern history is replete with accounts of international armed conflicts resulting in declared or undeclared wars. Although different types of conflicts take place at different levels of society, yet international conflict is distinct from all of them. International conflict is the most dangerous of all human conflicts. The following characteristics of international conflict, as outlined by Professor Wright, explain the distinct nature of international conflict: ...international conflict, often resulting in war, is (a) the most dangerous to mankind; (b) the most typical of social conflicts; (c) the most comprehensive of all other forms of conflict; and (d) the most thoroughly examined in the literature dealing with conflict. Ostensibly, the dangerous nature of war distinguishes it from the other forms of social conflicts. War is dangerous to everyone. It brings untold miseries, makes people homeless and destroys existing values of the society. It has become even more dangerous in the nuclear age. If a nuclear war ever takes place, it will probably annihilate the whole world and might bring an end to human civilization. Realizing that war is a dangerous social phenomenon, nation-states have directed some of their resources to regulate or resolve the conflicts of their time peacefully and amicably. But not all attempts to resolve conflicts have been successful. In the twentieth century violent religious, tribal, civil, undeclared and declared wars have taken place. During the post-World War II era there occurred a war in Korea, three wars in the Middle East, two wars over Kashmir, several wars in Latin America, a war in Indo-China, Russian intervention in Hungary and Czechoslovakia, tribal war in Nigeria, civil wars in the Congo and Pakistan, and religious turmoil in nothern Ireland. It appears as if we are living in a state of affairs in which the "gun" constitutes law and order and all men are at war with each other. It is the kind of situation which Stanley Hoffmann would describe as "The State of War". According to Hoffmann, international politics is nothing but, "'A State of War'--a competition of units in the kind of State of nature that knows no restraints other than those which the changing necessities of the game and the shallow conveniences of the players impose." Conceding that, "there are some oases of real peace and periods in which the competition is less fierce", Hoffmann nevertheless concludes that, "'the State of War' is the aspect of international relations that dominates."
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