ABSTRACT
In the recent period, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has unveiled a program for concerted rise of the country’s prowess in several dimensions. This rise of China also coincided with a fresh thinking on resolution of territorial disputes with a number of countries in China’s neighborhood in land and maritime areas. Although China has solved most of its land territorial disputes with a majority of its fourteen land neighbours-first in the 1960s and then in the 1990s-it has yet to resolve disputes with India and Bhutan and in the maritime domain with several East and Southeast Asian countries. Of these maritime territorial disputes, the issues related to Diaoyudao (Senkaku Islands) and South China Sea islands are posing considerable challenges for the country. The Chinese leadership is acutely aware of the connection and impact these disputes could pose on its rise in the coming years and hence has formulated several policies that could serve the country in good stead. However, the leadership has to address several issues, including its changing national strategies, sovereigntymatters and internal political and military pressures.
