Freedoms Of Navigation In The Asia Pacific Region

The need for freedoms of navigation in regional waters is frequently mentioned in statements from regional forums, but a common understanding of what constitutes a particular freedom of navigation or the relevant law is lacking. This book discusses how law, politics and strategy intersect to provide different perspectives of freedoms on navigation in the Asia-Pacific region. These freedoms are very important in this distinctively maritime region, but problems arise over interpreting the navigational regimes under the law of the sea, especially with regard to the rights of foreign warships to transit another country’s territorial sea without prior notification or authorisation of the coastal state, and with determining the availability of high seas freedoms of navigation and overflight in an exclusive economic zone. The book explores these issues, referring in particular to the position of the main protagonists on these issues in Asian waters – the United States and China – with their strongly opposing views. The book concludes with a discussion of the prospects for either resolving these different perspectives or for developing confidence-building measures that would reduce the risks of maritime incidents. Providing a comprehensive yet concise overview of the various different factors affecting freedom of navigation, this book will be a valuable resource for those working or studying in the fields of international relations, maritime security and the law of the sea.

"The need for freedoms of navigation in regional waters is frequently mentioned in statements from regional forums, but a common understanding of what this constitutes a particular freedom of navigation or the relevant law is lacking. This book discusses how law, politics and strategy intersect to provide different perspectives of freedoms on navigation in the Asia-Pacific region. These freedoms are very important in this distinctively maritime region, but problems arise over interpreting the navigational regimes under the law of the sea, especially with regard to the rights of foreign warships to transit another country's territorial sea without prior notification or authorisation of the coastal state, and with determining the availability of high seas freedoms of navigation and overflight in an exclusive economic zone. The book explores these issues, referring in particular to the position of the main protagonists on these issues in Asian waters - the United States and China - with their strongly opposing views. The book concludes with a discussion of the prospects for either resolving these different perspectives or for developing confidence-building measures that would reduce the risks of maritime incidents. Providing a comprehensive yet concise overview of the various different factors affecting freedom of navigation, this book will be a valuable resource for those working or studying in the fields of international relations, maritime security and the law of the sea"--

Cooperation and Engagement in the Asia-Pacific Region provides valuable insight into a region that encompasses many important maritime regions, and harbors promising opportunities for maritime cooperation and engagement.

This edited book, Regulation on Navigation of Foreign Vessels: Asia-Pacific State Practice, is a collection of country papers focused on one of the more contentious and diverse subject areas of the international law of the sea – foreign vessel rights of navigation in national waters.

The volume surveys and discusses the range of current issues arising in the law of the sea from an Asian-Pacific perspective. There have been major developments in the law of the sea in the region: many current controversies (e.g. over archipelagic sealanes passage, drift-net fishing and environmental management) have their origins, or important exemplars, in the region. The contributors include international lawyers, political scientists and government officials with expertise in the region. Particular aspects of the book which are of interest are: (a) its discussion of the perspectives of particular countries in the region (East Asia, Australia, the Pacific Islands); (b) its focus on issues of the marine environment and fisheries, including drift-net fishing; (c) discussion of specific developments which are of general interest (the Torres Strait Treaty and its implementation, maritime-confidence-building measures, dispute resolution); and (d) an overview of issues relating to high seas freedoms, including in particular transit through straits and archipelagoes. There is a concluding essay by the editors summarizing the various trends.

This paper considers freedom of navigation law and practice in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

Navigational rights and freedoms have been central to the development of the law of the sea since the original debates over whether the seas were 'open' or 'closed' to maritime traffic. The 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea recognises the legitimate rights of coastal states to proclaim sovereignty and assert jurisdiction over vast areas of maritime space. In return, maritime states are given a range of navigational rights over waters ranging from the territorial sea through to the high sea. The new regime of the law of the sea created by the Convention presents an opportunity to review developments in the law of navigational rights and freedoms. This book assesses the navigational regime established by the 1982 Convention, with emphasis given to the continuing importance of the freedom of the seas. Navigation in the territorial sea and international straits is reviewed, especially in the Straits of Malacca and Singapore, and the Torres Strait. Archipelagic navigation from the perspective of two claimant states, Indonesia and the Philippines, and a user state, South Korea, is also considered. The interaction of environmental concerns with navigational rights is an important feature of the current law of the sea regime with relevant conventions assessed and the role of the International Maritime Organization in developing navigational standards considered. Both European and Canadian practice in the protection of sensitive marine environments and the impact upon navigational rights is also considered. Finally, the roles of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea and the International Maritime Organization in dispute resolution are reviewed, before a concluding consideration of the future for navigational rights and freedoms in the twenty-first century.