Destabilizing Factors：
While stabilizing factors dominated the period immediately after the Cold War, there are a number of potential destabilizing factors and flash points.
1. Remnants of the Cold War
One major remnant of the Cold War was the heavily armed confrontation on the Korean Peninsula. Once it was hoped that a four-party talk among North and South Korea, China and the United States would de-escalate the deadlock. But it was shattered by the fear that North Korea was developing nuclear warheads and testing its own delivery system. Continual spying incidents only added to the already heightened regional tension.
2. Maritime Boundary Disputes
Major arms conflicts, such as those in Indo-China are over. But there are still a number of unresolved issues that are potential flash points. They include the military standoff in the Korean Peninsula and the unresolved boundary issues between Russia and Japan over the northern islands. There are a number of maritime disputes in both East and Southeast Asia. They include those between Japan and China over Senkaku/Tiaoyutai Island; between Japan and Korea over Dokdo/Takeshima; between Malaysia and Singapore over Pedra Branca Island; between Malaysia and Indonesia over Sipadan and Ligitan islands; between Malaysia and Brunei over Limbang territory in Sarawat; and between Philippines and Malaysia over Sabah. Also Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam as well as Malaysia and Thailand have disputes over the Gulf of Thailand. But the most problematic is the competing claims over the Spratlys in the South China Sea by six states. General Lisandro Abadia, former armed forces commander of the Philippines once said' "the future area of conflict in the Asia Pacific region may shift towards the maritime area, specifically the territorial dispute of the South China Sea."
3. National and Regional Diversities
Compared to other region, Asia Pacific is the most diverse region in the world in terms of culture, ethnicity, religion, politics and international linkages. As mentioned earlier, the visible improvement of the overall economy eased much of the social and political conflicts arising from such diversities. Yet fundamental attitude, belief and social condition take a long time to change. Until they are transcended by higher order unity and the perceived gaps considerably narrowed, these cleavages remain a destabilizing or potentially destabilizing factor for national as well as regional security. Such facts can be witnessed in the post-cold war ethnic conflicts in the rest of the world.
