Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Date of Degree

2-2026

Document Type

Master's Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Program

Political Science

Advisor

Michael Lee

Subject Categories

International Relations | Political Theory

Keywords

power dynamics, Sino-Indian border disputes, South Asia, Eurocentrism, rivalries, IR theories

Abstract

In international relations, the distribution of power is a key theme impacting the propensity for nations to break into wars; however, the vast academic literature is Eurocentric with a concentration on the United States and the Soviet Union. This paper shifts to the unexplored distribution of power in South Asian with a particular focus of Sino-Indian border conflicts namely the Sino-Indian War (1962), the Nathu La and Cho La clashes (1967), the Arunachal Ambush (1975), Sumdorong Chu standoff (1987), the Armed Confrontation (2013), and the Doklam Standoff (2017), and the Galwan Valley (2020) to determine if the region was more peaceful in a unipolar, bipolar or a multipolar system. The data shows that unipolarity is intrinsically conflict-promoting since majority of the conflicts –1962, 1967, 1975, 2013, 2017, and 2020 transpired within a unipolar system than when they were in a bipolar system in 1987. Additional determinants of conflict causation such as the role of lesser power(s) compared to China and India (i.e. Pakistan), the effect of geographical territorial proximity between neighbors and types of rivalries were also explored. The paper concludes that a future Sino-Indian conflict is likely since the two states are strategic rivals connected to inextricable questions of national identity - China’s desire to control Tibet and India’s push for Hindu nationalism.

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