From Accepting to Challenging the International Law of the Sea: China and the South China Sea Disputes

2016 ◽  
pp. 255-276
Author(s):  
Jacques deLisle
Keyword(s):  
South China Sea ◽  
International Law ◽  
South China ◽  
The South China Sea ◽  
Law Of The Sea ◽  
The South ◽  
China Sea

The South China Sea

Asian Survey ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 55 (3) ◽  
pp. 455-477 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stein Tønnesson
Keyword(s):  
South China Sea ◽  
International Law ◽  
South China ◽  
Use Of Force ◽  
The South China Sea ◽  
Law Of The Sea ◽  
The South ◽  
Government Behavior ◽  
China Sea ◽  
The Law

The article looks at three ways in which international law has affected government behavior in the South China Sea. It has exacerbated disputes. It has probably curtailed the use of force. And it has made it difficult to imagine solutions that violate the law of the sea.

An International Law Perspective on Insular Features (Islands) and Low-tide Elevations in the South China Sea

2017 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 298-315 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ted L McDorman
Keyword(s):  
South China Sea ◽  
International Law ◽  
South China ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
The South China Sea ◽  
Law Of The Sea ◽  
The South ◽  
Republic Of China ◽  
China Sea ◽  
The Law

The numerous insular features (islands/rocks) and low-tide elevations (reefs, shoals, etc.) within the South China Sea have long been the centre of attention and dispute involving Brunei, China (the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of China (Taiwan)), Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam. This contribution focuses on said maritime features from the perspective of the law of the sea. A general overview is provided of the international legal rules that apply to islands, rocks and low-tide elevations with reference to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, customary international law and international adjudications. The article then examines what the littoral states have said and done respecting the insular features in the South China Sea and offers some reflections in the context of the Philippine-China arbitration.

scholarly journals Navigation in the South China Sea: Introductory Remarks

2017 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 238-242
Author(s):  
Giuseppe Cataldi
Keyword(s):  
South China Sea ◽  
International Law ◽  
South China ◽  
The South China Sea ◽  
Law Of The Sea ◽  
The South ◽  
International Conference ◽  
China Sea ◽  
General Overview ◽  
Rules And Principles

This article presents the author’s introductory remarks presented at the international conference The South China Sea: An International Law Perspective (Brussels, 6 March 2015) during a panel dedicated to questions of navigation. It provides a general overview of the competing claims in the South China Sea and highlights relevant rules and principles of the law of the sea that are applicable to the region.

The Regime of Islands Reframed:

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 1-126
Author(s):  
Clive Schofield
Keyword(s):  
South China Sea ◽  
International Law ◽  
South China ◽  
Legal Status ◽  
Potential Role ◽  
The South China Sea ◽  
Law Of The Sea ◽  
The South ◽  
China Sea ◽  
Definition Of

Abstract The definition of islands represents a longstanding source of uncertainty under the international law of the sea, resulting in numerous disputes among coastal States. This is primarily due to the significant impacts the legal status of islands has on both their maritime entitlements and potential role in the delimitation of maritime boundaries. This study highlights the geographical diversity of islands and outlines the historical development of as well as progress towards the clarification of the legal definition of islands. The Award of the Arbitral Tribunal in the South China Sea case is examined in detail as it provides the first detailed international judicial examination and interpretation of the Regime of Islands. The definition of other types of insular features including low-tide elevations and artificial islands as well as submerged features are also addressed. Reactions to the interpretation of Article 121 by the Tribunal in the South China Sea case are explored before conclusions and considerations on the potential implications of these developments are offered.

scholarly journals A Bridge Too Far? Assessing the Prospects for International Environmental Law to Resolve the South China Sea Disputes

2015 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 578-597 ◽  
Author(s):  
David M. Ong
Keyword(s):  
South China Sea ◽  
International Law ◽  
South China ◽  
Environmental Law ◽  
Case Law ◽  
The South China Sea ◽  
Law Of The Sea ◽  
The South ◽  
International Environmental Law ◽  
China Sea

Doctrinal approaches to the South China Sea island and maritime jurisdiction disputes have traditionally invoked the international law on territorial sovereignty acquisition and the law of the sea for their resolution. However, neither of these two fields of international law and their established institutions has succeeded in settling these disputes. This paves the way for consideration of other, related but less historically and politically significant international legal developments establishing constraints against the activities undertaken on and around many of the South China Sea insular formations. In this paper, the potential for international environmental law to resolve the South China Sea disputes will be examined. Specifically, international environmental law governing ‘shared’ water bodies and their application in relevant international case law will be assessed. These obligations will be mapped onto the South China Sea disputes, with a view to providing the means for co-operation towards the resolution of these disputes.

scholarly journals The Legal Status of Islands and Other Features and the China's Unreasonable Claim on the Nine-dash Line in South China Sea Under the Arbitration Award in the Philippines v. China Case

2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nguyen Tien Vinh
Keyword(s):  
South China Sea ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Continental Shelf ◽  
International Law ◽  
South China ◽  
The South China Sea ◽  
Law Of The Sea ◽  
The South ◽  
China Sea ◽  
Arbitration Award

In the context of the long, complex disputes in Bien Dong (South China Sea) and the emergence of the use of force risks therefor, a long term solution based on a system of approaches and measures on deferent diplomatic, economic, and legal levels must be available. On the legal level, the Article analyzes the main contents of the Arbitration Award in the Philippines v. China Case regarding the status of islands and other features and the China's unreasonable claim on the nine-dash line and its actions in the South China Sea. Since then, the Article suggests the comments on the effects and consequences of the Award in light of the general perception that this Award is an important victory of international law in general and of the Law of the Sea in particular, this also is the victory of the countries, including Vietnam against China's unjustified unilateral claims and acts in the South China Sea. Keywords: South China sea; the arbitration award on South China sea, legal status of islands, the nine-dash line. References: [1] PCA Case Nº 2013-19, The South China Sea Arbitration, Award of 12 July 2016,https://pcacases.com/web/sendAttach/2086. [2] Nikos Papadakis, The International Legal Regime of Artificial Islands, Sijthoff - Leyden, 1977. [3] Convention on the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone, Geneva 29 April 1958, United Nations, Treaty Series , vol. 516, p. 205.[4] Convention on the Continental Shelf, Geneva, 29 April 1958, United Nations, Treaty Series , vol. 499, p. 311.[5] United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, Montego Bay 10 December 1982.[6] Van Dyke, M. Jon and Bennett, Dale (1993), Islands and the Delimitation of Ocean Space in the South China Sea, 10 Ocean Yearbook.[7] Jonathan I. Charney (1999), Rocks That Cannot Sustain Human Habitation, American Journal of International Law, 93 A.J.I.L. 863.[8] Continental Shelf Area between Jan Mayen and Iceland (Jan Mayen Continental Shelf), Report and Recommendations to the Government of Iceland and Norway of the Conciliation Commission of 19-20 May 1981 in 62 International Law Reports (1981), p. 108.[9] D.W. Bowett (1979), The Legal Regime of Islands in International Law; E.D. Brown (1978), Rockall and the Limits of National Jurisdiction of the UK: Part 1, Marine Policy Vol. 2, p. 181 at pp. 206-207; J.M. Van Dyke & R.A. Brooks (1983), Uninhabited Islands: Their Impact on the Ownership of the Oceans’ Resources, Ocean Development and International Law, Vol. 12, , Nos. 3-4, p. 265; R. Kolb (1994), The Interpretation of Article 121, Paragraph 3 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea: Rocks Which Cannot Sustain Human Habitation or Economic Life of Their Own, French Yearbook of International Law, Vol. 40, 1994, p. 899; D. Anderson (2002), Islands and Rocks in the Modern Law of the Sea, in United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982: A Commentary, Vol. VI, pp. 307-21; J.L. Jesus, Rocks (2003), New-born Islands, Sea Level Rise, and Maritime Space, in J. Frowein, et al., eds., Negotiating for Peace, p. 579.[10] North Sea Continental Shelf Cases, Para 57.[11] Tunisia Libya Case, Para. 128.[12] Case Concerning Delimitation of the Maritime Boundary in the Gulf of Maine Area, (U.S. v. Canada), I.C.J. Reports 1984, p. 222.[13] PCA Case Nº 2013-19, The South China Sea Arbitration, Award of 12 July 2016. Truy cập tại đường link:https://pcacases.com/web/sendAttach/2086.[14] Note Verbal No. CML/8/2011 (14 April 2011) from the Permanent Mission of the People’s Republic of China to the UN Secretary-General with regard to the joint submission made by Malaysia and Viet Nam to the Commssion on the Limites of Continental Shefl, Annex I, Doc. A23; Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying's Remarks on Relevant Issue about Taiping Dao, 06/03/2016: www.fmprc.gov.cn/mfa_eng/xwfw_665399/s2510665401/t1369189.shtml.[15] Daniel Schaerffer, The Legacy of the Nine -Dashed Line: Past, Present and Future in International Workshop Paracel and Spratly Archipelagos History Truth, Danang, 19-21/4/2014: http://pdu.edu.vn/a/index.php?dept=20&disd=&tid=4921.[16] Note Verbal No. CML/17/2009 (7 May 2009) from the Permanent Mission of the People’s Republic of China to the UN Secretary-General with regard to the joint submission made by Malaysia and Viet Nam to the Commssion on the Limites of Continental Shefl: https://www.un.org/Depts/los/clcs_new/submissionsfiles/mysvnm33_09/chn_2009re_mys_vnm_e.pdf.[17] Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) Outer limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles from the baselines: Submissions to the Commission: Joint submission by Malaysia and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.[18] http://www.un.org/Depts/los/clcs_new/submissiosfiles/submission_mysvnm_33_2009.htm.      

scholarly journals Remarks by David Freestone

2018 ◽  
Vol 112 ◽  
pp. 4-7
Author(s):  
David Freestone
Keyword(s):  
South China Sea ◽  
International Law ◽  
South China ◽  
The South China Sea ◽  
Law Of The Sea ◽  
The South ◽  
China Sea ◽  
State Practice ◽  
The Unclos ◽  
Arbitration Award

As a teacher of international law for more years than I care to admit, I have to declare at the start of my comments that I admire the South China Sea Arbitration Award greatly. It presents an interpretation of the provisions of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) on islands and rocks in a comprehensive, carefully considered and intellectually satisfying way. As my colleagues will doubtless point out, it does present problems relating to current existing state practice, but it does to my mind capture what the UNCLOS III drafters had in mind when the 1982 Convention text was put together.

scholarly journals Treaty of Tordesillas Syndrome: Sovereignty ad Absurdum and the South China Sea Arbitration

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher R Rossi
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
South China Sea ◽  
International Law ◽  
South China ◽  
The South China Sea ◽  
Law Of The Sea ◽  
The South ◽  
Global Commons ◽  
China Sea ◽  
The World

Cornell International Law Journal: Vol. 50 : No. 2 , Article 3. The South China Sea is the fifth largest body of water in the world. It accounts for five trillion dollars in annual commercial activity involving a third of maritime traffic worldwide. China claims wide-ranging sovereign rights over upwards of ninety percent of this Sea via a controversial U-shaped line. Its claim upsets regional stability and portends a coming conflict with the United States, the world's supreme maritime power, over the application of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). China claims its sovereign authority predates UNCLOS by millennia; critics date China's claim to 1947. Already described as the most important ruling in the modem history of the international law of the sea, a Tribunal of the Permanent Court of Arbitration handed down a sweeping rebuke of China's contentions in the July 2016 Award in the South China Sea Arbitration (Philippines v. China), setting up a confrontation between emergent China and established United States. This Article discusses that Award in light of the fundamental tension within the liberal model of freedom of the seas-the unreconciled tension involving ownership interests over resources of the sea (dominium) and the decision-making power to rule over the seas (imperium). While scholarly attention dissects the Tribunal's discussion of historical and factual circumstances (effectivites) that aggregate against China's sovereignty claims, this Article notes deeper problems, too: Ambiguities in UNCLOS have allowed powerful states to historically territorialize wide swaths of the dwindling global commons, all within the compliant liberal framework. Such claims are reminiscent of the Treaty of Tordesillas (1494), where Spain and Portugal divided up ownership of the world. The territorializing instinct of the Treaty of Tordesillas serves as a syndromic indicator of a recurring problem involving the sea and its increasingly scarce resources. It sets up a major challenge for international law as between superpower interests in the South China Sea, and, more generally, over disputes involving the global commons and spatial regimes on the emerging frontier of technological capability.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document