Major Armed Conflicts

In: SIPRI yearbook: armaments, disarmament and international security, S. 87-108

Abstract

Four of the major armed conflicts ongoing in 2002 -- Chechnya, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, & Israel-Palestinians -- intensified substantially. They also underlined the continuous evolution in the methods of war fighting. The conflicts in Sri Lanka, Somalia, & Sudan, each of which came close to achieving a negotiated settlement, highlighted that external influences, such as diplomatic pressure or promises of military, foreign, & humanitarian aid, can play a major role in changing the dynamics of an intra-state conflict. There is also evidence that the effects of the US war on terrorism had a direct impact on most of the eight conflicts surveyed. Adapted from the source document.