Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts with the label International law and the South China Sea dispute

America Doesn't Owe China Anything after the Verdict ( Source- The National Interest / Author- Machael Mazza)

USS John Stennis on petrol ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / United States Navy) Source- The National Interest  Author- Michael Mazza The accepted wisdom has it that, as a general rule, Chinese leaders should not be made to “lose face.” In the wake of last week’s Permanent Court of Arbitration award in Philippines v. China, a veritable chorus of China hands has called for the United States to support the ruling, but to avoid rubbing Xi Jinping’s nose in the dirt. Giving “face” to Xi Jinping—essentially, allowing him to escape the current predicament without incurring further shame—is important if we are to avoid a dangerous escalation of tensions, or so the thinking goes. There is a certain logic here. Xi Jinping has just suffered a significant defeat on the international stage, and at the hands of lowly Manila, no less. Should other countries now act with what Chinese citizens or leaders perceive to be disrespect, Xi will look weaker and more ineffective than he

The award of The Permanent Court of Arbitration Tribunal in South China Sea, What next?

Chinese coast guard ship in South China Sea ( Image credits- VOA) At last the long awaited ruling has come in the South China Sea dispute between China and the Philippines. The Permanent Court of Arbitration Tribunal has ruled over overwhelmingly in favour of the Philippines. The ruling has set at rest the long held Chinese argument of claim over the whole of South China Sea on the ground of historical precedent. It laid down the broader law by which China's claim to the islands in South China Sea and it's encompassing Exclusive Economic Zone has been rejected. China is put to great embarrassment as China is a signatory to The United Nations Convention on Laws of the Sea (UNCLOS) and is bound by the terms and laws laid down in the said convention. China outright rejected the ruling saying that the same is unilateral in nature and the Court does not have the right to adjudicate in sovereign disputes.  What is the South China Sea Dispute: The South China Sea dispute

While the Courts Have Ruled, China Is Not Leaving the South China Sea ( Source- The National Interest / Author- Julian Ku)

PLA soldiers( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Chairman, Joint  Chiefs of Staff, United States) Source- The National Interest Author- Julian Ku The Philippines’ sweeping victory in this week’s arbitral decision issued under the UN Convention for the Law of the Sea dealt a serious blow to China. But while the arbitral award dramatically changed the legal landscape and geography of the South China Sea in favor of the Philippines and the United States, it is important to keep in mind that even following the award’s legal conclusions, China may have the legal right to maintain a strong and even dominant presence in the Spratly Islands.  To be sure, the arbitral award is a big defeat for China’s legal claims in the region. Prior to the decision, China had a series of ambiguous but legally plausible claims to historic rights under its famous “9 Dash Line” as well as an unspecified series of exclusive economic zones covering all of the Spratly Islands.  Such unspecified c

China’s ADIZ Over South China Sea: Whole, Partial Or None – Analysis ( Source- Eurasia Review / Author- Felix K. Chang)

South China Sea Dispute ( Credits- VOA) Source- Eurasia Review Author- Felix K. Chang Ever since China declared an air defense identification zone (ADIZ) over the East China Sea in late 2013, many wondered whether China would do the same over its claims in the South China Sea. Early this year, the United States began to publicly warn China that it would not recognize a Chinese ADIZ over the South China Sea. Given the timing of its admonition, Washington seemed like it was preparing for a Chinese reaction to a ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration on a Philippine case against China’s South China Sea claims, which is expected in May. China’s declaration of an ADIZ over the East China Sea caught many off guard. Perhaps to prevent a recurrence, the United States chose to signal China in advance. Naturally, China’s defense ministry retorted that Beijing had every right to establish an ADIZ over the South China Sea. After all, Beijing considers the area within its “n

This Is How to Stop China from Dominating the South China Sea ( Source- The National Interest / Authors- Truong-Minh, VuNgo Di Lan)

Image credits- United States DOD Source- The National Interest Authors-  Truong-Minh , VuNgo Di Lan China’s growing assertiveness regarding maritime disputes in the South China Sea is not the result of a burst of nationalism or any short-term calculation. In fact, China has consistently pursued a single long-term strategy with the effective control of the entire South China Sea as its ultimate goal. This strategy has five core features. First and foremost, it seeks to change the territorial status quo gradually, island-by-island. This stands in contrast to a strategy whereby a country tries to gobble up the entire disputed territory in one fell swoop. China first occupied the Paracel Islands in 1974 and then slowly expanded its presence southward by attacking Vietnam’s islands in the Spratly chain in the 1980s. Most recently, after a tense standoff with the Philippines, China took effective control of the Scarborough Shoal, thereby changing the territorial status qu

The Strategic Significance of China's Woody Island Power Play ( Source- The National Interest / Author- Ashley Townshend)

Chinese PLAAF J-11  ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / United States Air Force) Source- The National Interest Author- Ashley Townshend China's recent deployments on Woody Island carry a larger strategic significance. Aside from being unmistakable signs of militarization, Beijing's actions highlight both the effectiveness of its strategic expansion into the South China Sea, and the dilemma Washington and others face in crafting a response. Reports last week that China has sent J-11 fighter jets to Woody Island came less than ten days after satellite images revealed two batteries of HQ-9 surface-to-air missiles had been deployed to the disputed island. While provocative, neither deployment is entirely unprecedented. Rather, they represent the latest in a series of incremental steps that Beijing has taken to bolster its strategic foothold in the Paracel Islands.  Since late 2012, China has been steadily upgrading Woody Island's port facilities, radars a

China Rejects Latest US FONOP in the South China Sea ( Source- The Diplomat / Author- Shannon Tiezzi)

USS Curtis ( DDG-54) Wilbur underway ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / United States Navy) Source- The Diplomat Author- Shannon Tiezzi As The Diplomat previously reported, the United States has conducted a second freedom of navigation operation (FONOP) within 12 nautical miles of a disputed island in the South China Sea. On January 30, the USS Curtis Wilbur, a guided-missile destroyer, sailed within 12 nautical miles of Triton Island in the Paracels, which is controlled by China but also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan. This particular FONOP was designed to assert the right of innocent passage through territorial waters without having to give advance notice (something both China and Vietnam demand when foreign vessels transit through territorial waters in the Paracels. China’s Foreign Ministry responded sternly to the FONOP, saying that “the U.S. navy vessel violated the relevant Chinese law and entered China’s territorial sea without authorization.” As spokesperson

The Strategist, the Lawyer and the South China Sea ( Source- The Diplomat / Author- Kerry Lynn Nankivell)

South China sea ( Image credits- VOA) Source- The Diplomat Author- Kerry Lynn Nankivell Readers of The Diplomat were recently afforded an exchange by two leading experts in South China Sea disputes. Dr. Sam Bateman, a retired commodore of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), wrote of the strategic problems associated with U.S. Freedom of Navigation Operations (FON OPS) in the South China Sea. Bateman warns of the United States “militarizing” a sensitive circumstance and “turning back the clock” on international law. Responding to these claims, Commander Jonathan Odom, judge advocate general (JAG), former oceans policy advisor in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, and current military professor at the Daniel K. Inouye Asia Pacific Center for Security Studies, defended the FON OPS program by noting the legal errors underpinning Bateman’s argument. At face value, each author’s analysis is useful but incomplete. Accepting Bateman’s approach means believing that FON OPS a