ignty of Unarang rock in the hydrocarbon-rich
Celebes Sea in dispute; separatist violence in Thailand's
predominantly Muslim southern provinces prompts measures to close
and monitor border with Malaysia to stem terrorist activities;
Philippines retains a dormant claim to Malaysia's Sabah State in
northern Borneo; Brunei and Malaysia agreed in September 2008 to
resolve their offshore and deepwater seabed dispute, resume
hydrocarbon exploration and renounce any territorial claims on land;
piracy remains a problem in the Malacca Strait

Maldives
none

Mali
none

Malta
none

Marshall Islands
claims US territory of Wake Island

Mauritania
Mauritanian claims to Western Sahara remain dormant

Mauritius
Mauritius claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered
British Indian Ocean Territory), and its former inhabitants, who
reside chiefly in Mauritius; claims French-administered Tromelin
Island

Mayotte
claimed by Comoros

Mexico
abundant rainfall in recent years along much of the Mexico-US
border region has ameliorated periodically strained water-sharing
arrangements; the US has intensified security measures to monitor
and control legal and illegal personnel, transport, and commodities
across its border with Mexico; Mexico must deal with thousands of
impoverished Guatemalans and other Central Americans who cross the
porous border looking for work in Mexico and the United States

Micronesia, Federated States of
none

Moldova
Moldova and Ukraine operate joint customs posts to monitor
the transit of people and commodities through Moldova's break-away
Transnistria region, which remains under OSCE supervision

Monaco
none

Mongolia
none

Montenegro
none

Montserrat
none

Morocco
claims and administers Western Sahara whose sovereignty
remains unresolved - UN-administered cease-fire has remained in
effect since September 1991, but attempts to hold a referendum have
failed and parties thus far have rejected all brokered proposals;
Morocco protests Spain's control over the coastal enclaves of Ceuta,
Melilla, and Penon de Velez de la Gomera, the islands of Penon de
Alhucemas and Islas Chafarinas, and surrounding waters; discussions
have not progressed on a comprehensive maritime delimitation,
setting limits on resource exploration and refugee interdiction,
since Morocco's 2002 rejection of Spain's unilateral designati