The Rights and Obligations of States in Disputed Maritime Areas

Disputed maritime areas exist around the world, and in many cases the affected States have not been able to reach agreement on cooperative arrangements or regulate commercial activities within the area. Where a claimant coastal State increases their level of unilateral activity, such as in the South China Sea, long-standing conflicts remain difficult to resolve. This book examines the rights and obligations States have under international law concerning disputed maritime areas in the first comprehensive treatment of this highly topical and pressing issue. It analyses conventional law, general international law, judicial decisions, State practice and academic opinions that shine light on the international legal framework applicable in disputed maritime areas. Proposing practical solutions for interpreting and applying the applicable international law, the book discusses the extent to which it currently provides clear guidance to States, and how international courts and tribunals have dealt with cases related to disputed maritime areas. "1 Introduction The second half of the 20th century witnessed a significant rise in disputed maritime areas, because of the expansion of the limits of maritime jurisdiction. As a result, conflicts inevitably emerged between coastal States that are in close geographical proximity to each other. To first sketch some background to disputed maritime areas, how they arise and need to be understood. Most coastal states will make claims that are based on full entitlements to maritime zones, encompassing, for instance, the whole 200 nautical mile (nm) exclusive economic zone (EEZ) or continental shelf and a 12 nm territorial sea subject to delimitation, in case of an overlap. Entitlements to maritime zones derive from land territory, and, in turn, the maritime zones to which a territory is entitled follow from having title over that particular piece of territory, be it mainland or a high-tide feature. Geographers have calculated that because of this tremendous expansion of coastal State authority in the last 50-60 years, about 400 'maritime areas of overlapping entitlements' arose. A 'maritime area of overlapping entitlements' exists when a maritime area has not been delimited, but where potentially a maritime boundary can be determined, due to States having entitlements to maritime zones that overlap in the same area. Often there are two States having overlapping entitlements, but for instance in semi-enclosed seas, characteristic of which is their geographical congestion, there may be more States involved"-- Provided by publisher Many disputed maritime areas exist around the world. Often, the States concerned have not been able to reach agreement on how to, for example, regulate commercial activities within such areas. Conflict regularly arises between claimant coastal States if one of them acts unilaterally, such as in the South China Sea. This book examines the rights and obligations States have under international law concerning disputed maritime areas, in the first comprehensive treatment of this highly topical and pressing issue. It analyses conventional law, general international law, judicial decisions, State practice, and academic opinions that shine a light on the international legal framework that is applicable in disputed maritime areas. Proposing practical solutions on how to interpret the relevant international law, the book discusses the extent to which it currently provides clear guidance to States, and how international courts and tribunals have dealt with cases related to activities in disputed maritime areas.