UNCLOS Update: Tensions with China in South China Sea Increase
During the 17th century, maritime exploration reached its peak. Countries developed unspoken conventions regarding laws of the sea; the United Nations’ Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea explains how, then, nations owned a narrow strip of ocean around their coastlines while the open sea was free to everyone. However, the 20th century brought about unavoidable issues—pollution, overfishing, and international tensions threatened the previous maritime rules. In 1945, President Truman extended United States control over oil, gas, minerals, and other resources off their continental coast, challenging the freedom-of-the-seas doctrine. These developments led the United Nations to establish the Convention on the Law of the Sea in 1982; the international body recognized the need for expanded rules and regulations on the sea in response to the changing world. Despite these diplomatic efforts, however, tensions between world superpowers still exist and worsen over matters of our open oceans.
Tensions between countries continue to rise over matters of the sea, whether it is between neighbors in Oceania or China in the South China Sea. According to Boston University’s Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies, Japan and Australia constantly disagree regarding fishing policies. Japan has a notorious history for ignoring the convention’s regulations regarding fishing. In 1999, Australia and New Zealand sued Japan over the depletion of the southern bluefin tuna, and again in 2010 over illegal whaling. Not only does UNCLOS divide these countries, but so do their cultural values and interests in the seas.
Prominent differences also exist between China and other superpowers regarding the division of the South China Sea. The Associated Press shares how China continues to creep farther away from its designated UNCLOS boundaries, impeding coastlines and maritime activity of island nations in the region (e.g. the Philippines). Valuable resources, especially natural gas, are abundant in the South China Sea, making disputes even more hostile. Indeed, China is expected to sign a nonaggression pact with other Southeast Asian nations; however, little goes to support China’s genuinity in this effort. A CNN article explains how a Chinese jet sent a flare that could have dangerously affected Canadian military operations in the region. Western nations grumbled in response, hackles raised in light of China’s continuous pushing for greater control in the South China Sea.