This three volume set, reviewed here in its e-book version, is divided into three types of border disputes, the easily understood one where boundaries are contested (territorial), disputes where boundaries are incomplete (positional) and disputes where resources straddle boundaries (functional). The first of the set, then, includes Afghanistan/Pakistan: Pashtun, Dominican Republic/Haiti and Israel/Jordan, to name a few. Positional disputes include the Cod War (between the UK and Iceland) and the Bering Sea (between the USA and Russia), and the last volume has Antarctica and Brazil-Paraguay, among others […] The contributors have or are pursuing degrees from all over the world. Readers will be able to study the treaties in question that are reproduced – from the Congress of Vienna in 1815 through the 2005 document that settled the dispute between Benin and Niger that had been stirring up trouble between them since their independence almost 60 years ago. The format in general is an easy to understand introduction followed by more in-depth analysis. As with all ABC-Clio works, the organization is clear, indexing is robust and the essays include a rich variety of cited resources for further exploration.
One example will help. Antarctica is covered in the third volume, functional disputes. Most disputes come down to a contest for resources, and Antarctica is no exception. Whaling was important for the blubber, the glycerin within used for soaps, cosmetics and lamp oil. The article in this encyclopedia traces American hubris, perhaps, in claiming Antarctica for itself consonant with the philosophy articulated in the Monroe document. UK’s claim was made in 1908, and Argentina and Chile were not slow in making their own claims based on geographical closeness, made stronger as they created stations with young families and domestic spaces like those in the home countries. As the focus changed from whales to scientific research, the USA and Russia vied for supremacy while working jointly on some projects such as the Vostok Lake, allowing scientists to drill deep into the planet’s ecological history. The essay is made understandable through excellent maps, references to intimate details such as territorial markers erected and then destroyed along with the history of the treaties and their signatories, always outlining the context as well as the passions that informed the contestants. Peder Roberts, the author of this chapter, is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Strasbourg, France. He has an MA from the University of New South Wales and a PhD from Stanford University and wrote a book describing the transnational science from World War I to the Cold War. His chapter includes references to several books that would direct the reader to some of the best other works.
This work is a good starting place for teens and college students. The writing provides a clear, straightforward narrative without a lot of jargon. The electronic version is easy to navigate, share and cite. This was completed in May of 2014, so while there is extensive coverage of the Tuzla Sand Bar, there is nothing on the current Russia/Ukraine dispute, and while there is deep history on Syria and its many border disputes, the current situation is not a chapter in this excellent three volume set.
