The six-party dispute concerning the Spratlys in the South China Sea is complicated and has been unresolved for centuries. This thesis reappraises it in the light of international law with the aim of suggesting feasible solutions to the dispute. The analysis of the thesis is based on the most reasonable and generous interpretation of Article 121 of the 1982 Law of the Sea Convention (LOSC) to the particular situation of the Spratlys resulting in 12 of 35 islands having potential to generate full maritime zones. Concerning the sovereignty issue, this thesis applies international law on territorial acquisition to analyse the strengths and weaknesses of the parties' claims. In line with most of the leading literature on this subject, the thesis identifies major weakness in the various claims. However, it considers Vietnam's claim to be the strongest in international law. Regarding the maritime issue, the thesis overcomes the difficulty of unresolved sovereignty issues by making hypotheses, so that a prospective maritime delimitation is mapped out under contemporary international law on maritime delimitation. This demonstrates that maritime rights generated from the Spratlys are not as great as expected by the parties, because the Spratlys' effect is limited to the remaining area that is left after giving full effect to the mainland of littoral states. Based on the prospects of the sovereignty and maritime issues, the thesis recommends two feasible solutions. The first is unilateral submission to an arbitral tribunal under Annex VII of the 1982 LOSC, as applied in the Barbados v. Trinidad and Tobago case. Alternatively, diplomatic measures involving negotiation in good faith towards joint development may be the best option.

The Challenge of New Territories and Science, Technology, and Sovereignty in the Polar Regions

Citations

The South China Sea dispute : a reappraisal in the light of international law

References

The South China Sea dispute : a reappraisal in the light of international law

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