Recent escalation of South China Sea Conflict

Recent escalation of South China Sea Conflict

The Conflict in the South China Sea has been under the Spotlight for decades. With the Sea having about 190 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and 11 billion barrels of oil, one-third of the global shipping (grossing 5.3 trillion USD trade every year) passing through it, and abundance of fish stock (15% of total global stock) and a huge reserve of untapped rare earth metals/ mineral deposits, it holds significant economic, strategic and political importance. This has given rise to hostilities, increased tension and conflict among the various nations. The last few years have witnessed a sharp increase in the number of unplanned encounters between ships and aircraft in the disputed areas. These hostilities present an active threat to peace and stability.

It is the need of the hour that all the Nations in the South China Sea region and those involved in the extraction of the resources ensure that the oceans remain protected and these resources are used sustainably so that they don’t get depleted permanently due to their overuse.

It is also important to keep in mind that all countries involved should ensure that human rights violations are curbed and brought down to a minimum.

1) To this end, I propose that the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) shall create a binding mechanism to settle the disputes between two nations regarding sharing of EEZ, resource sharing, sovereignty claims and territorial dispute.

2) Further, I believe that amendment should be made to Article 312 (2) of UNCLOS to read as

‘... reach agreement on any amendments by way of two-third majority vote of the member states’

instead of ‘... reach agreement on any amendments by way of consensus and there should be no

voting on them until all efforts at consensus have been exhausted’.

3) The Disputes should essentially be settled by the ITLOS rather than other forms of arbitration,

with only few exceptions. Additionally, it shall lay down procedural remedies for individuals to

protect their fundamental rights.

4) Mexico also proposes setting up an executive council to regulate the UNCLOS named Executive Council on the Laws of Sea (EXCLOS) for the regulation of UNCLOS and to maintain peace and security that shall:

a. work towards shedding more clarity on the difference between sovereignty and sovereign rights, identifying gaps in the existing maritime legal regime specifically corresponding to the demarcation of specific rights, duties, and obligations the nations shall uphold,

b. carry out cooperative activities and Confidence building measures at the unilateral, bilateral and/or multilateral level by taking joint action on issues as

i. marine environmental protection;

ii. marine scientific research;

iii. safety of navigation and communication at sea

c. It shall Set up intergovernmental committees and function to establish international legally binding instruments for demarcating/ establishing maritime boundaries, resource extraction, refinement and use, conservation of oceanic resources and maritime security,

d. Additionally, countries with an overlapping EEZs shall establish resource sharing mechanisms such as creating set ups and factories with cooperation to process oil and and natural gas obtained from the shared EEZ,

e. It shall facilitate international cooperation for Capacity building that shall be carried out-

 i. through cooperation programmes, technical partnerships and fellowships

ii. Additionally there shall be cross-sectoral cooperation, at national, regional and global levels in the field of marine science, resource extraction and refinement, environmental and ocean conservation,

f. It shall create a peacekeeping body that shall convene both annual and special sessions( for emergency situations) and resort to dialogue and discussion to peacefully de-escalate conflicts. The body shall also create comprehensive, region specific incidents at sea agreement that is binding on all Nations using the existing Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea (CUES) as the base:

i. It shall apply to both international and territorial waters,

ii. It ‘applies to all vessels upon the high seas and in all waters connected therewith navigable by seagoing vessels’ as also specified in The Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGS),

iii. It lists the provocative actions that should be avoided including simulation of attacks by aiming guns, Illumination of the navigation bridges and Aerobatics in the vicinity of ships encountered,

iv. It shall also incorporate coast guards under its mandate,

g. Establishment of a proper Global Ocean Treaty that aims to protect the common heritage of the

High Seas under which-

i. The EXCLOS shall promote the eventual extraction of the mineral accretions valued nodules from the seabed.

ii. License for exploratory mining should be look over crucially,

iii. Environmental Impact Assessment should be independently verified annually,

iv. It shall put areas that are fragile or critically low on resources under a region-wide moratorium to allow for its recovery,

h. It shall organize an Annual Program for the military and navy forces at a neutral venue for the purpose of de-escalation training and joint Naval exercises. Additionally, there shall be training for people who will be manning the hotline and there should be extensive dive into conflict management. It shall incorporate exchanges between military academies, staff colleges and training and observers at military exercises. They shall also host seminar for defense officials and military officers on selected international security issues,

i. The Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea (DOALOS) of the Office of Legal Affairs of the United Nations shall monitor all developments that the EXLOS makes regularly.