James 1

Name: Angel James

Course And Section: International Law and organizations, Section- A

Name of Assignment: Short Assignment- 1

Name Of the Instructor: Professor Rajdeep Pakanati

Date of Submission :26 October, 2021

South China Sea Dispute

Introduction

China's broad claims to sovereignty over the sea and its estimated 11 billion barrels of

undeveloped oil and 190 trillion cubic feet of undiscovered natural gas—have enraged rival

claimants Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam. Countries began

claiming islands and zones in the South China Sea as early as the 1970s, such as the Spratly

Islands, which have abundant natural resources and fishing grounds. Foreign military are not

allowed to execute intelligence-gathering activities, such as reconnaissance flights, in China's

exclusive economic zone, according to Chinese legislation. But according to the United States,

claimant countries, under UN Convention of the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), should have

freedom of navigation through EEZs in the sea and are not required to notify claimants of

military activities. In July 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague handed down

its decision on a UNCLOS claim brought by the Philippines against China, ruling in the

Philippines' favour on practically every point. While China is a signatory to the treaty that

formed the tribunal it refuses to accept courts authority.

Background
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China was governed by the Ming dynasty, who were also known as Terracotta warriors.

During the reign of the Ming dynasty, the entire region, boarding the south China sea along the

coast of Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines were shown to be Chinese territory. In the

present times, the Chinese government has claimed these areas under the South China sea,

coming within the territorial waters of many southeast Asian Nations as its own territory. The

Chinese called this new boundary as the (nine-dash line) territory. In 1988, the Imperial Chinese

navy with the support of the Chinese air force repeatedly intruded into the water territories of the

Philippines and started the construction of artificial islands called the Spratly and Johnson group

of islands. The Philippine government fiercely opposed the move, claiming that the disputed

territory was within Philippine Sea waters' nautical limit and that China had infringed Philippine

territorial sovereignty. The Philippine government repeatedly made requests to the Chinese

government to stop construction in the disputed territories, however the communist party of

China openly ignored them, and since 1988, the Chinese government has built a series of smaller

artificial islands, military installations, air force and naval bases to further strengthen the Spratly

and Johnson islands. The Philippine government sought the PCA (Permanent Court of

Arbitration) in 2015 to settle the South China Sea dispute, however the Chinese administration

did not show up. The PCA stated unequivocally that China's (nine-dash line) theory was

erroneous, that the construction of the Spratly and Johnson islands was illegal, that China had

violated almost all of its treaties and obligations under UNCLOS, and that China had violated

Customary International Law, specifically Article 2(4) of the UN Charter.

The Chinese government refused to accept the judgment. Following the PCA's

judgement, the Chinese navy began construction of huge seaports in the Spratly Harbor so that

Chinese naval aircraft carrier fighter squadrons of the Chinese air force could be deployed there
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permanently. Since 2016, China has begun to construct new islands in the territorial waters of

Vietnam, Indonesia, and Malaysia, stating that the nine-dash rule is correct and that they will

continue to construct more islands in the South China Sea.

American Response to The Dispute

In recent years, China's adamant stance on the South China Sea issue has provided the

United States with an opportunity to bolster its influence in Asia once more. Satellite

photography has demonstrated Growing Chinese efforts to reclaim territory in the South China

Sea by physically expanding islands or building new islands altogether in recent years. China has

built ports, military installations, and airstrips, in addition to heaping sand onto existing reefs,

particularly in the Paracel and Spratly Islands, where it has twenty and seven outposts,

respectively. Woody Island has been militarized by China, that has also deployed fighter jets,

cruise missiles, and a radar system.

To safeguard its political, security, and economic interests in the region, the US has

undertaken FONOPs and bolstered backing for Southeast Asian partners to counter China's

assertive territorial claims and land reclamation initiatives. In reaction to China's strong presence

in the disputed territory, Japan has sold military ships and equipment to the Philippines and

Vietnam to strengthen their maritime security and prevent Chinese aggression.

The US has indicated support for a binding code of conduct and other confidence-

building measures, as it has major interests in guaranteeing freedom of navigation and securing

maritime lines of communication (SLOCs). China's claims jeopardize SLOCs, which are vital

maritime passageways that permit trade and naval movement.

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The US has given patrol boats to the Philippines and announced its support for Manila,

but it has also taken great caution to avoid being forced to defend the Philippines and other allied

countries in the case of a fight in the South China Sea. The Spratly Islands are not covered by the

1951 US-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty because these territorial disputes did not become

public until 1978. In the case of the Spratlys, America would most certainly be unwilling to

assist the Philippines.

Conclusion

While tensions over the sea have the potential to escalate irrationally, the status quo in the

South China Sea is likely to persist indefinitely. It is quite difficult to find a legal answer to this

dilemma. This situation is expected to persist as a point of contention between China and the

United States. The United States' "pivot to Asia" has elevated the South China Sea to a new level

of significance as a test case for Sino-American relations. If China takes a moderate approach,

the South China Sea will remain calm and peaceful. While China's stance appears to be

influenced by domestic politics, it is also impacted to some extent by ASEAN cooperation and

solidarity, the regional presence of external powers such as the US, and the possibility of

establishing a binding Code of Conduct.

Works Cited

Asthana, Subodh. “Law of the Sea: An Analysis of Contemporary Conflicts.” IPleaders, 10 Feb.

2020, blog.ipleaders.in/sea-law.

BBC News. “South China Sea Dispute: China’s Pursuit of Resources ‘Unlawful’, Says US.”

BBC News, 14 July 2020, www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-53397673.

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Li, Yang. “Three Questions on the South China Sea.” China-US Focus, 11 June 2018,

www.chinausfocus.com/foreign-policy/three-questions-on-the-south-china-sea.

Shaw, Malcom. International Law. 8th ed., New Delhi, cambridge university press, 2019.

Singh Parmar, Swati, and Adithya Anil Variath. Law of Seas. 1st ed., Gurgaon, Thomas Reuters,

Legal, 2021.