According to the conflict barometer, the number of violent conflicts and wars between states, populations or political groups will increase by 12 to 216 in 2022. The study published Friday by the Heidelberg Institute for International Conflict Research (HIIK) lists 21 wars and 21 “limited wars” up, two more than in 2021, as reported by Kathpress.
With the Russian offensive war in Ukraine, there is a military conflict of the highest escalation level in Europe. The researchers see the dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan as a limited war.
Battle for resources rages on
According to the Conflict Barometer, the two most common causes of violent conflict are competition for resources such as land, water and mineral resources, as well as ideological and religious differences. This includes, for example, the struggle for national or regional supremacy or for autonomy.
“There is almost never just one issue of conflict, but we usually see a bundle of causes,” said study co-author Tatiana Valyaeva, according to the Catholic News Agency (KNA) when presenting the report. She cited the conflict in Northern Ireland, the war in Yemen and fighting in Nigeria as examples of conflicts that were also religiously motivated. The intensity of Islamist violence by the terrorist group IS also remains high.
Conflicts are increasingly caused by climate change
Researchers are observing a growing number of conflicts caused or exacerbated by climate change. As desiccation and desertification accelerate in sub-Saharan countries, for example, the livelihoods of farmers and herders are being destroyed. “The consequences are flight movements and competition for increasingly scarce resources,” says co-author Hagen Berning. In the European polar regions of Europe, the Sami fought for their livelihood. Dramatic impacts of environmental destruction and climate change can also be observed in the Amazon region.
problem areas in Africa
According to the study, the global hotspots of war and crises are mainly the sub-Saharan African countries with 16 wars. Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Mali, Somalia and Sudan have been affected. Three domestic war conflicts are described for Nigeria alone.
Corona protests in Asia, drug war in Mexico
In Asia, researchers call the conflict in Myanmar a war. The study classifies protests against the government’s corona measures as a conflict in China. In Latin America, conflicts with drug cartels in Mexico and fighting with paramilitaries in Colombia are considered limited wars.
The conflict barometer is an initiative of political scientists from Heidelberg. Since 1991, the publication provides an overview of crises, conflicts and wars. According to the information, about 200 scientists worldwide are working on the report.
Source: Krone
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