Japan to send plutonium cache to US under nuclear deal

Some 331 kilograms of plutonium will be sent by ship from Japan to a nuclear facility in South Carolina by the end of March

Japan will send a huge cache of plutonium -- enough to produce 50 nuclear bombs -- to the United States as part of a deal to return the material that was used for research, reports and officials said Tuesday.

The plutonium stockpile, provided by the US, Britain and France decades ago, has caused some disquiet given that Japan has said it has the ability to produce a nuclear weapon even if it chooses not to.

Some 331 kilograms (730 pounds) of the highly fissionable material will be sent by ship to a nuclear facility in South Carolina by the end of March, Kyodo News reported Monday in a dispatch from Washington that cited unnamed Japanese government sources.

The shipment, which comes ahead of a nuclear security summit in Washington in March, is meant to underscore both countries' commitment to nuclear non-proliferation and is part of a deal they made in 2014.

It will be one of Japan's most significant overseas movements of plutonium since it transported one tonne from France in 1993 to be used in nuclear reactor experiments.

That shipment triggered an outcry at the time from countries citing environmental and security concerns.

A Japanese official confirmed the amount of plutonium to be sent to the US and said that preparations for the shipment are under way.

"But we can't comment on further details, including the departure date and route, for security reasons," the official in the nuclear technology section at the education ministry told AFP Tuesday.

The material has been stored at the Nuclear Science Research Institute northeast of Tokyo, he added.

Japan relies heavily on nuclear technology for its energy needs.

In 2006, then foreign minister Taro Aso sparked panic in neighbouring countries by saying Japan, a scientific superpower with numerous Nobel prizes to its credit, had the know-how to produce nuclear arms but opts not to.

Japan is the only country to ever have been attacked with nuclear weapons, and under a 1967 policy it refuses to produce, possess or allow nuclear weapons on its soil.

But in 2010 Tokyo admitted to previous secret agreements with the United States to allow American warships to carry nuclear weapons across Japanese territory and to take the arms to US bases on Okinawa island in an emergency.

US atomic bombs obliterated the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in the closing days of World War II, killing more than 210,000 people. Asia Times

The Strategic Importance of Andaman and Nicobar Islands

In the Bay of Bengal, far removed from the mainland, lie the 572 islands of Andaman and Nicobar, which form India’s southeast border. While the northernmost part of the archipelago is only 22 nautical miles away from Myanmar, the southernmost point, called the Indira Point, is a mere 90 nautical miles from Indonesia. These islands dominate the Bay of Bengal and the Six Degree and Ten Degree channels which more than 60,000 commercial vessels traverse each year.

Among the nine major bottlenecks that control entry to this region are the Malacca Strait and the Six Degree Channel. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands lie in this strategically important zone, meaning that India with its growing naval capabilities could play a significant role in controlling access.

India’s Navy chief, Admiral R K Dhowan recently acknowledged that the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are a “very very important aspect” of India’s security, acting as extended arms of the country. Dhowan said that India needed to deploy naval assets to the islands for surveillance in important sea lines of communication.

Yet over the past 15 years successive governments have been slow to act, even after having declared their intention of beefing up the security infrastructure on the islands. A unified land, sea and air command was created more than a decade ago, but the command still faces turf wars, funding issues, and glacial decision making.

In the meantime, other countries – notably China – have expanded their presence in the region. Naval vessels camouflaged as fishing boats have been sighted, while other ships make port visits to Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

The inability of India’s civilian bureaucracy to recognize the geostrategic importance of the islands is evident in the fact that the only radar station at Port Blair is switched off every evening. When Malaysian authorities sought information about the missing MH370 from India there was none to share.

Soon after coming to power last year, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi brushed aside environmental concerns and cleared a decade-old proposal to set up a radar station on an island lying a few miles from Coco Islands, which Myanmar has leased to China for the purpose of setting up a listening post. Reportedly, infrastructure development on Coco Islands was completed in short order, and besides a radar station the Chinese have also built an airstrip. In contrast, India took ten years to decide to build a radar station on the nearby Narcondam Islands.

Plans to improve the infrastructure are welcome but the Modi government needs to acknowledge the strategic importance of Andaman and Nicobar Islands and push an indifferent bureaucracy to faster decision-making. India could be using these islands to project power into the region and signal China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy about its readiness to counter any intervention.

Of the 572 islands that make up the Andaman and Nicobar group, only 37 are inhabited. The absence of a human presence on hundreds of these islands has made them vulnerable to narcotics smuggling, intrusion by foreign vessels, and other incursions. The home ministry needs to seriously consider suggestions to encourage migration from the mainland and open up some of these strategically located uninhabited islands to tourism. That would give India a stronger physical footprint and would help the country track the movement of vessels and people.

The northern islands are separated from the southern group by the Ten Degree Channel, which is 80 nautical miles wide. Close watch needs to be kept over the movement of ships and military vessels that pass through these waters.

Recognition of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands as strategic assets would ensure a change in government policy. The slow pace of development and indifferent bureaucracy has ensured that after several years an undersea cable link between India’s mainland and the islands remains incomplete. Internet connectivity, even at the naval base in the capital Port Blair, is reported to be erratic.

Road building, airstrip construction, and even the building of jetties has been slow or non-existent. More than a decade after the tsunami of 2004 an important road that helps link North with South has still not been rebuilt.

Heavy rainfall restricts building activity to six months a year and the distance from mainland adds to the cost of construction as all material must be shipped to the islands. Few companies are willing to work on the islands because of the distance and cost. For some materials, importing from Indonesia would be far cheaper and more cost effective than sending shipments from the Indian mainland.

Surveillance in the southern group of islands is a major challenge. The destruction of the road by the tsunami has meant that the two groups of islands are linked only by air and sea. Rather than expedite the work, the pace of development has been caught up in red tape. The landing strip on Campbell Bay is only 1,000 meters in length and plans to extend it have moved slowly. The runway in capital Port Blair took more than three years to repair.

While India wants to neutralize Chinese presence in the region, the decision-making in New Delhi has been slow and lacking in focus. Efforts to strengthen India’s military presence have not kept pace with Chinese activity. Modi’s outreach to Japan, which has been added to Malabar, hitherto a U.S.-India bilateral military exercise, signals a change in direction by New Delhi, which has traditionally been very sensitive to Chinese concerns.

Modi has an opportunity to make Andaman and Nicobar Islands an important element of his “Act East Policy” of engaging with countries in the region east of India. A policy of benign neglect towards the islands should be transformed into something more robust, which develops the island territories with an eye to India’s larger geopolitical interests.

Sunil Raman is a Delhi-based journalist and author. In the last two decades he has worked with leading media organizations including the BBC World Service and The Economic Times in Delhi, London and Bangalore.

 

Japan’s 5th Generation Stealth Fighter to Make Maiden Flight in Early 2016

Japan’s Ministry of Defense Technical Research and Development Institute (TRDI) announced that a prototype of Tokyo’s first indigenously-designed fifth-generation air superiority fighter, the Mitsubishi ATD-X Shinshin, will make its maiden flight in February 2016, according to Japanese media reports.

Prior to its first test-flight, the aircraft will undergo extensive taxiing and ground trials at the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries testing center located in Aichi Prefecture on Japan’s main island of Honshu. From there the fighter prototype is expected to fly to Gifu Air Field, an airbase of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, situated in the neighboring prefecture of Gifu sometime in February.

The principal objective of the ATD-X Shinshin program is to develop a research prototype aircraft an–“advanced technology demonstration unit” to test the capacity of Japan’s defense industry to develop, among other things, a powerful fighter engine and various other indigenous stealth fighter aircraft technologies.

The program is meant to eventually produce Japan’s first indigenously-designed fifth-generation air superiority fighter, designated F-3, with serial production slated to begin in 2027, although various delays in the development of the ATD-X Shinshin prototype –scheduled to be fully developed by 2018– make a later date more likely.

The reason behind the development of the F-3 is the refusal of the United States to sell to Japan the Lockheed-Martin F-22 Raptor stealth air superiority fighter in the 2000s. According to some media reports, Lockheed-Martin is playing an undetermined role in the development of the ATD-X prototype.

Among other things, the aircraft will feature 3D thrust vectoring capability. According to a The Diplomat contributor, other design characteristics include:

If completed, the F-3 is supposed to incorporate some cutting-edge technology. The aircraft will be fitted with an active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar. The radar will have capabilities for electronic countermeasures, communications functions, and possibly even microwave weapon functions. The Shinshin is planned to have a flight-by-optics flight control system. Data is transmitted by optical fibers rather than wires. In this way data is transmitted faster and is immune to electromagnetic disturbance. Furthermore, the new Japanese aircraft will have a so-called self repairing flight control capability. It will allow the aircraft to detect failures or damage in its flight control surfaces.

So far, one full-scale ATD-X prototype has been constructed.  Back in 2011, Japan decided to procure 42 F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters, the first of which are scheduled to arrive at the end of 2016. The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter procurement is an interim solution until Tokyo can field its own indigenous fifth generation fighter. By Franz-Stefan Gady for The Diplomat

The New Military Force in Charge of China’s Nuclear Weapons -Goodbye Second Artillery Force; hello PLA Rocket Force

Goodbye Second Artillery Force; hello PLA Rocket Force

On December 31, China inaugurated three new military forces: a general command for the army, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Strategic Support Force, and the PLA Rocket Force. The latter, which replaces the Second Artillery Force, will be in charge of China’s nuclear arsenal.

General Wei Fenghe was named the new force’s first commander. Wei has a long history with the Second Artillery Force; he served as its chief of staff from 2006-2012 and then as commander-in-chief from 2012 until the service was reconfigured as the Rocket Force.

The creation of the Rocket Force is part of a larger move to restructure China’s military with a streamlined command under the direct control of the Central Military Commission. The new force is considered the fourth branch in China’s military, on equal footing with the PLA Army, Navy, and Air Force, according to Global Times. Unlike the Second Artillery Corps, the Rocket Force will command all three legs of China’s nuclear triad, rather than just controlling land-based nuclear missiles. The Rocket Force will also be in charge of conventional missiles. Global Times reported that the force has already held its first drills, practicing mobile combat operations and missile launches.

In the inauguration ceremony on Thursday, President Xi Jinping (who is also chairman of the Central Military Commission) called the PLA Rocket Force the “core force of strategic deterrence, a strategic buttress to the country’s position as a major power, and an important building block in upholding national security.” He tasked the new force with enhancing China’s nuclear deterrence and counter-strike capabilities, and thus maintaining a strategic balance. He also urged the Rocket Force to improve China’s ability to conduct medium- and long-range precision strikes.

Yang Yujun, spokesperson for China’s Defense Ministry, emphasized on Friday that China’s nuclear policy and strategy will not change under the PLA Rocket Force. China remains committed to its no-first-use policy on nuclear weapons, and will keep its “nuclear capability at the minimum level required for safeguarding its national security,” Xinhua paraphrased Yang as saying.

According to the U.S. Department of Defense’s 2015 report on the Chinese military, the Second Artillery Force had 50 to 60 inter-continental ballistic missiles. Meanwhile, China was devoting more energy to developing sea-based nuclear platforms, such as the Jin-class nuclear ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs).

As the report notes, “Further increases in the number of mobile ICBMs and the beginning of SSBN deterrence patrols will force the PLA to implement more sophisticated command and control systems and processes that safeguard the integrity of nuclear release authority for a larger, more dispersed force.” The creation of the PLA Rocket Force may herald further changes to China’s command and control systems for nuclear forces. 

By Shannon Tiezzi for The Diplomat

The creeping “shariazation” may be a bigger problem facing Indonesia than the threats from separatist rebels in Papua and Aceh, or from imported radical Islamic ideologies like that of the Islamic State (IS) movement

The creeping “shariazation” may be a bigger problem facing Indonesia than the threats from separatist rebels in Papua and Aceh, or from imported radical Islamic ideologies like that of the Islamic State (IS) movement

From President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s visit in Indonesia’s easternmost province of Papua to the surrender of a separatist rebel leader over in the westernmost province of Aceh, events during the last week of 2015 illustrate not just how expansive Indonesia is, but also the complexities and the challenges the nation faces.

On Tuesday, Jokowi inaugurated the Time Capsule Monument in Merauke, Papua. That’s nothing like the time machine you see in sci-fi movies. Instead, it is a monument that deposits capsules of rolled up one-page papers containing the dreams of today’s Indonesians. The idea is that these capsules would be opened in 2085 by whoever is in charge then and they will see whether these dreams have been fulfilled.

Jokowi rounded up the project with his own seven-point dream that includes the nation beating the rest of the world in science and technology, becoming the center of the world’s civilization, leading the global economy and living in peace with its diversity and cultural, religious and ethical values. It will be interesting to read what others dream about Indonesia, but we won’t know that for 70 years, if we’re still around.

The dreams of Indonesia’s founding fathers who fought for independence 70 years ago have always been there for everyone to see. Sukarno and Mohammad Hatta, who proclaimed independence on Aug. 17, 1945, were clear about what they wanted: an independent and free Indonesia, with dignity, and one that is democratic, just, peaceful and prosperous.

They didn’t put their dreams in a capsule but etched them in a document, now known as the 1945 Constitution, complete with a roadmap of how to get there. Seventy years later, we are living their dreams, even if only partly, thanks to their hard labor and sacrifices.

The choice of Merauke for the monument and Jokowi’s decision to end the year in Papua — he spent New Year’s Eve on scenic Raja Ampat Island, said to be the last heaven on Earth — is symbolic. Papua was not part of the republic until 1963 when the Dutch relinquished their last East Indies colonial possession. Today, Jakarta still struggles to fully integrate Papua.

On Monday, a day before Jokowi’s arrival, an armed group attacked a police station in Sinak in the Puncak regency, killing three officers and seizing firearms. The attack was the latest indicator that things are far from being fine in Papua, where many disgruntled people have decided to take up arms against the authorities or privately support the rebels.

There was good news from Aceh, which like Papua had seen its share of armed separatist rebellions until 2005. Din Minimi, the most wanted man in Aceh for going back to fight against the government, surrendered along with his men in return for guarantees of an amnesty. Din had been a member of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), which signed the peace agreement with the government in 2005, but while his comrades ran for political offices and won, he decided to return to armed struggle, fighting from the jungles.

Aceh, however, had a different problem to close the year. The administration of Banda Aceh, the capital of the province, stopped people from celebrating the coming new year by declaring it haram and deploying the police on New Year’s Eve to ensure compliance. Even though Jan. 1 is a national holiday, most people in Banda Aceh stayed home.Aceh is the only province in Indonesia governed under sharia, but dozens of regencies and municipalities have also formally adopted their versions of the Islamic law. The application of sharia in these places, most particularly in Aceh, which often contravenes national laws, is discriminatory and encourages intolerance against religious minorities.

The creeping “shariazation” may be a bigger problem facing Indonesia than the threats from separatist rebels in Papua and Aceh, or from imported radical Islamic ideologies like that of the Islamic State (IS) movement.

The ban on celebrating New Year’s Eve in Aceh is just one of many moves seen in recent years as Muslim conservatives throw their weight around to impose their ideology on the rest of the nation. While we could agree on moderation in celebrating the new year, Banda Aceh didn’t need to go that far. Muslim leaders in other parts encouraged mass prayers to greet 2016. Many observed the call, but those who wanted to party went anyway. In Jakarta, the traditional fireworks party went ahead on Thursday.But there were no fireworks to greet the birth of the ASEAN Community on Dec. 31. For such a big leap, for Indonesia as for the other members of ASEAN, the arrival of the community surely deserved a bigger celebration. There was not even a proclamation by the President or any member of the government. In the absence of any government explanation, the nation is left in the dark about how this community will impact their lives, if at all. Maybe we will get to hear about it after the new year

Endy M. Bayuni

China’s House of Cards: Property Glut could spell Doom for their Economy

The Chinese economy has a long history of proving its doubters wrong. But a growing number of experts are wondering whether this time the doubters might be on to something. Beijing’s goal for 2016 is to keep growth ticking over at around 6.5 per cent but four issues, like horsemen of an economic apocalypse, are threatening those plans: industrial overcapacity, heavy business taxes, sky-high property inventories and financial risks. We examine each threat in a four-part series that starts today.

Zhou Xin explores the real estate ambitions that have fallen to ruin in Anyang, Henan province.

Construction on the Venice Impression in Anyang (安陽), Henan (河南) province, started in 2009 during China’s boom days and hopes for the project were high.

The mall would be not only the largest in the region, it would give those living in the inland Chinese city a taste of luxury, of designer products and exotic lifestyles.

At least, that was the vision. Today the project appears little more than a complex skeleton of cement and steel.

On a chilly December morning, few signs of work could be seen, though huge red banners promised that the local authorities would “try a thousand ways to keep the project alive and spare no effort to protect the interest of the masses” – promises made, presumably, to comfort creditors.

Wang Teng, who was peeping into the 180,000-square-metre construction site through a hole on a blue iron door, was not convinced.

 “It’s over, it’s over,” said Wang, who said he had lent about 300,000 yuan (HK$357,000), his life savings, to the developer in 2010 for a promised annual interest rate of 18 per cent.

“Money invested here is all washed away,” said Wang.

He is just one of the 200,000 creditors to Chaoyue Group, a developer and local coal-property conglomerate.

Chaoyue’s boss, Yang Qinghe – a Provincial People’s Congress delegate, was arrested in November on criminal charges of “illegal fund-raising”, leaving an estimated unpaid debt of 4 billion yuan, local media reported.

The Venice Impression is just one of several “rotten-tail” projects in Anyang, and Anyang is just one of hundreds, if not thousands, of Chinese cities and towns with an oversupply of property.

While top Chinese cities such as Beijing and Shenzhen are experiencing property price rises due to a limited supply of new homes, places like Anyang are drowning in vacant or unfinished homes, dragging down nationwide property investment and the economy as a whole.

“China’s property market was the biggest growth engine for its economy in the past decade,” said Tao Dong, the chief economist for non-Japan Asia at Credit Suisse.

“It is largely over now, and for China, there is no alternative.”

Against this background, President Xi Jinping (習近平) has listed property inventory reduction as one of his priorities to revive the world’s second biggest economy.

Xi’s general idea is to provide housing to 270 million migrant workers who have left their rural roots to work in towns but are not fully covered by state pension, education and welfare.

Property investment growth fell to 1.3 per cent in the first 11 months of last year – from a growth rate of about 20 per cent two years ago.

“China property investment will see a decline of 2 to 3 per cent next year – the first property investment fall on record,” Zhu Haibin, chief China economist for JPMorgan said. He said smaller cities would continue to suffer from property oversupply for at least two to three years, even with government incentives to encourage home-buying.

Local governments are already taking action. In Puyang (濮陽), another city in Henan, the local government announced it would provide a 150-yuan-per-square-metre subsidy to rural residents who purchased homes in towns and cities. In Anyang, the government started in August to provide a 20,000 yuan subsidy for anyone willing to buy an apartment in the city, one of the nation’s ancient capitals known as the birthplace of the first Chinese characters.

“The days are over when everyone wanted to buy property, the more the better. Everyone is cautious now,” said Xiao Li, a property agent in Anyang. “But for people who really need a home, like a new couple ready to live together, then it may be the time to take advantage of the government subsidy.”

In Anyang, like other parts of China, the number of sales has been picking up. In Anyang, 3,392 apartments were sold in November, a 75 per cent rise from 1,937 in November 2014, according to data compiled by the local property channel run by Sina.com.

But in terms of area, the combined turnover of 415,000 square metres in November is small compared to the supply. There are at least 100 property projects on sale in Anyang and many have floor areas that match the total area sold in November.

 “It will take a fairly long process to solve the problem,” said Chen Xingdong, the chief China economist with BNP Paribas in Beijing. “It’s a hard reality to face – you can’t solve the property inventory problem in just one year however determined you are.”

China’s property development frenzy started in the late 1990s when urban residents needed to buy homes because most state employers had stopped providing free housing. The market boomed as millions of urban Chinese families moved into new apartments.

“The property industry is not only a pillar for the national economy but also a symbol of China’s rising economic power,” said Chen Sheng, the executive dean of China Real Estate Data Academy, a research agency in Shanghai. “The wealth of Chinese urban households is mainly in the form of property – it is the bedrock of China’s prosperity.”

Meanwhile, local cadres have found that selling land to property developers can generate welcome revenue. Land sale revenues were 4 trillion yuan in 2014, and cadres often see property development as the easiest way to promote GDP figures and boost their political careers.

Local governments often take land, sometimes by force, from farmers in return for insufficient compensation and then sell the land to property developers.

They then use the money to build roads, bridges and subway lines that have the effect of making more land available for sale.

Developers, on the other hand, can use acquired land as collateral to obtain credit for development before selling apartments to buyers.

The model has played out countless times across China, reshaping the country’s landscapes and skylines at an incredible speed – according to one estimate, China’s consumption of cement in the three years from 2011 to 2013 exceeded the US’s cement consumption for the entire 20th century.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, China had over 7 billion square metres of floor area under construction in the January-November period. But total property sales, by floor area, were only 1.1 billion square metres in the same period . On such figures, even if no new buildings were erected, existing supply could meet demand for the next couple of years.

Huw McKay, the head of Asian Economic Research of Westpac Institutional Bank, lists real estate construction as one of the “weakest elements” for the Chinese economy in 2016, along with heavy industry and manufacturing.

“The most important sectoral cycle in the Chinese economy is the real estate building cycle,” said McKay. “When the housing market is not strong, Chinese consumers become more anxious about their employment prospects.”

Property has also become a hotbed for corruption, a hub of money and power, and a jackpot for many of China’s richest.

The Venice Impression mall was part of Anyang’s plan to “make a big difference in three years” to its urban landscape and take advantage of the massive stimulus packages Beijing rolled out in 2009 and 2010. From Shenyang (瀋陽) in northeastern China to Erdos in Inner Mongolia (內蒙古), it became common for local governments to announce plans to rebuild cities and develop new towns in ambitiously short spaces of time.

Chaoyue was chosen as the company to realise Anyang’s ambitions for the Venice Impression. Despite being a private company, it had a Communist Party committee that received recommendations from the city.

When bank loans couldn’t cover its spending, Chaoyue turned to individuals like Wang via investment schemes offering a 1.5 per cent monthly rate, or 18 per cent annually.

Back when money was easily available and China’s economic boom seemed unstoppable, local residents rushed into such schemes in search of high returns.

The unlucky ones found themselves involved in developments that were little more than Ponzi schemes.

“It was like smoking opium,” said Li Jianjun, a taxi driver in Anyang.

“You put down 100,000 yuan at Chaoyue or Zhenyuan, and you took 2,000 yuan a month in interest payments – nobody wanted to work.”

Zhenyuan was another private company based in Anyang that has since been toppled by its unpaid debts.

The carnival came to an ugly end. By the end of 2011, many schemes had collapsed, forcing angry investors to protest on the streets. Billions of yuan evaporated.

In January 2012, the Anyang government published a long list of dozens of “illegal fund-raising” programmes, but to this day many debts remain unpaid.

“It’s just wrong to expect [your] money [will come back],” said Zhang, who was stood at the gate of Hong’an Imperial Capital, another unfinished project in Anyang. He was unwilling to give his full name.

“People were just thinking too much about money – a man just needs one bed to sleep on and three meals a day.”

For Beijing, it’s important that buildings coming on to the market can be filled.

“We must address the property inventory issue,” Xinhua reported in a summary of the economic works leadership meeting chaired by Xi on December 21.

“We must accelerate the process of making migrant workers urban citizens, and we must roll out housing reforms to accommodate these new residents as a way to expand demand and stabilise the housing market.”

Demand from migrant workers may make a difference.

“If you have an apartment in town, with a good school attached and good price, I don’t think a migrant worker will say ‘no’,” Chen with the Shanghai academy said.

Chaoyue has failed so far to revive its mall project despite government efforts to help and there are plenty of similar failures by other companies. But there are success stories, too.

Wanda Plaza of Anyang, which broke ground in March 2013, opened for business in July 2015. According to local media, the mall attracted 320,000 customers on the day of opening.

On Friday evenings, the three-floor mall is busy with shoppers, film watchers and families queueing to tuck in to Burger King.

So perhaps the dream behind the Venice Impression has not ended. At least, not yet.

 

Explaining Sunnis and Shia: Islam's ancient schismshared by both sects -What are the differences between Sunnis and Shia?

Muslims are split into two main branches, the Sunnis and Shia. The split originates in a dispute soon after the death of the Prophet Muhammad over who should lead the Muslim community.

The great majority of Muslims are Sunnis - estimates suggest the figure is somewhere between 85% and 90%.

Members of the two sects have co-existed for centuries and share many fundamental beliefs and practices.

Though they may not interact much outside the public sphere, there are always exceptions. In urban Iraq, for instance, intermarriage between Sunnis and Shia was, until recently, quite common.

The differences lie in the fields of doctrine, ritual, law, theology and religious organisation.

Their leaders also often seem to be in competition.

From Lebanon and Syria to Iraq and Pakistan, many recent conflicts have emphasised the sectarian divide, tearing communities apart.

Who are the Sunnis?

Sunni Muslims regard themselves as the orthodox and traditionalist branch of Islam.

The word Sunni comes from "Ahl al-Sunna", the people of the tradition. The tradition in this case refers to practices based on precedent or reports of the actions of the Prophet Muhammad and those close to him.

Sunnis venerate all the prophets mentioned in the Koran, but particularly Muhammad as the final prophet. All subsequent Muslim leaders are seen as temporal figures.

In contrast to Shia, Sunni religious teachers and leaders have historically come under state control.

The Sunni tradition also emphasises a codified system of Islamic law and adherence to four schools of law.

Who are the Shia?

In early Islamic history the Shia were a political faction - literally "Shiat Ali" or the party of Ali.

The Shia claimed the right of Ali, the son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad, and his descendants to lead the Islamic community.

Ali was killed as a result of intrigues, violence and civil wars which marred his caliphate. His sons, Hassan and Hussein, were denied what they thought was their legitimate right of accession to caliphate. Hassan is believed to have been poisoned by Muawiyah, the first caliph (leader of Muslims) of the Umayyad dynasty.

His brother, Hussein, was killed on the battlefield along with members of his family, after being invited by supporters to Kufa (the seat of caliphate of Ali) where they promised to swear allegiance to him.in Istanbul

These events gave rise to the Shia concept of martyrdom and the rituals of grieving.

There is a distinctive messianic element to the faith and Shia have a hierarchy of clerics who practise independent and ongoing interpretation of Islamic texts.

Estimates of the number of Shia range from 120 to 170 million, roughly one-tenth of all Muslims.

Shia Muslims are in the majority in Iran, Iraq, Bahrain, Azerbaijan and, according to some estimates, Yemen. There are large Shia communities in Afghanistan, India, Kuwait, Lebanon, Pakistan, Qatar, Syria, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

What role has sectarianism played in recent crises?

In countries that have been governed by Sunnis, Shia tend to make up the poorest sections of society. They often see themselves as victims of discrimination and oppression. Some extremist Sunni doctrines have preached hatred of Shia.

The Iranian revolution of 1979 launched a radical Shia Islamist agenda that was perceived as a challenge to conservative Sunni regimes, particularly in the Gulf.

Tehran's policy of supporting Shia militias and parties beyond its borders was matched by the Gulf states, which strengthened their links to Sunni governments and movements abroad.

Image caption Discontent among the Shia has fuelled street protests in Bahrain

During the civil war in Lebanon, Shia gained a strong political voice because of the military activities of Hezbollah.

In Pakistan and Afghanistan, hardline Sunni militant groups - such as the Taliban - have often attacked Shia places of worship.

The current conflicts in Iraq and Syria have also acquired strong sectarian overtones. Young Sunni men in both countries have joined rebel groups, many of which echo the hardline ideology of al-Qaeda.

Meanwhile, many of their counterparts from the Shia community have been fighting for - or alongside - government forces.