Disputes in the maritime domain are as old as the history of the clash of civilizations. The earliest known disputes were mostly intermittent and short term. Geography, technology, law, and geopolitics play a decisive role in the protraction and settlement of such disputes. The higher consumption rate of the world due to an increased population, its dwindling natural resources, slow economic growth, environmental challenges, and several associated reasons are all hastening the approach towards the oceans for sustenance. This sustenance would require replenishment of its economic and consumable resources. The race to secure interests and resources from the maritime domain would become paramount. This would lead to competition and conflicts. Such competitive pursuits for resources would add to the legacy of (maritime) disputes from historical to concurrent sources to become the new raison d'être for (maritime) conflicts in the near future. The research here would focus on the old and new conflicts and their maritime dimensions to provide assessment and analysis.
National Institute of Advanced Studies
Indian Institute of Science Campus, Bengaluru - 560012, India