South China Sea petro-politics - Term Paper Example

? South China Sea petro-politics South China Sea petro-politics IntroductionSouth China Sea is a vast area in the Pacific Ocean that stretches from Singapore to Taiwan and borders mainland china to the North, Philippines to the west, Malaysia to the north east and Indonesia and Vietnam to the south east. South China Sea has remained a major maritime heart of the entire South East Asia region and its strategic location has particularly made it one of the busiest international sea lanes. The geopolitics of the region has been particularly characterized by disputes that dates back to the end of the World War 11 when the bordering states such as Vietnam, mainland China, Taiwan, Malaysia, Philippines and Indonesia began to scramble to occupy the various islands in the region (Burgess, 2003). Historically the South China Sea region has for a long time been considered to a major flashpoint for regional tensions in the Southeast Asia. Although the conflicts have primarily been territorial and political disputes, the main cause of these political challenges is the scramble for the energy resources in the region. This is particularly because the region is estimated to have as high s 213 billion barrels of oil and this is a huge prize. On the other hand, the region also has n abundant natural gas reserves estimated to be around 266 trillion cubic feet and this is nearly 70% of the regions total petroleum resources. Since the 1990s, the disputes in the volatile region have increasingly transformed from a purely territorial conflict to a chain of interconnected conflicts involving competitive claims of oil and gas energy reserves as well as the other ocean resources such as fishing. With an estimated oil and gas energy reserves of nearly 28billion barrels according to American experts, the sensitivity of the regions conflicts has significantly impeded any effort to harness these petro energy resources as well as the effective determination of their economic feasibility of the resources in the region. This paper critically discusses the current petro-politics in the South China Sea with particular focus on the background of events as well as the interplay of the factors that have contributed to the current conflicts in the regions. Geopolitical and territorial disputes in the South China Sea The South China petro-politics has largely been characterized by an interstate dispute over territory and sovereignty of the vast resources found in the area particularly in the two islands of Spratlys and Paracels that are claimed by a number of countries in the region. For instance, according to Shen(2002), China claims almost the entire region stretching hundreds of miles arguing that it has a historical right over the area since it has always been an integral part of China for more than 2000 years. On the other hand, Vietnam has been increasingly disputing China’s historical account and the Asia country maintains that China only began to claim sovereignty over the two islands and the surrounding regions in the 1940s. According to Vietnam, both the chains of Islands and their surrounding regions are entirely within its territory and the country has documents to prove that it has been actively ruling Spratys and Paracels islands since the 17th century. The other major claimant of the energy rich region is Philippines which justifies its claims by its close geographical proximity to the two island chains. Both China and Philippines also claim another island known as Huangyan Island which is 100miles away from the Philippines and 500 miles from china(Manning, 2000). Additionally Malaysia and Brunei are now claiming a significant chunk of the South China Sea territory arguing that the region falls within their economic exclusion zones as defined by the UN convention on the law of the sea which was ratified in 1982.Brunei however does not claim any of the Islands that are currently under dispute. History of the conflict In 1947, the then Chinese government produced the location maps of the then South China Sea which included Nanhai Zhudao and Weizhitu islands in China. These islands had discontinuous dotted lines which were greatly undermining and impacting the uncertainties upon the island and ocean areas sovereignty. Disputes therefore started as a result of these dotted lines found on the Chinese maps also referred to as “nine dotted lines” .All these were made in the beginning of 1930s when errors occurred due to lack of accuracy in the production system by then but the Chinese government could not understand this because the maps were foreign maps. Additionally the Chinese believes that the sea is theirs as indicated in the petro-politics projects (1998-2001) which was conducted in South China Sea in Vietnam on the conflict between this nation, Taiwan and U.S.A (Wang, 2003). Further conflict about these islands has really affected the economic integrity of South China greatly. Philippines and South China are also on and on and off disputes fighting on which country to own the island. Various events as well in the 1990s have also risen as these countries are still disputing on these islands examples being the dispute about the maritime boundary in the gulf of Tonkin and disputes in the waters near Indonesia’s Natunas Islands. Generally all these events aim at exploitation of suspected crude oil and natural gas as well as carrying out fishing activities under the waters of various parts of South China Sea. Consequently although there is a potential future on the petro-politics, there is a lot of external influence. The critical sea lanes of communication and the China Sea are rich deposits in petroleum is of greater help and the future of this is highly bright. Petroleum politics as well has been an important aspect of diplomacy hence it is influenced by every nation worldwide. ` Due to lack of proper sharing of the available resources South China has remained at conflict with its neighboring countries. The differences have been associated with political geographical and control of waters. Acts of diplomacy have been used to solve many disputes. Competition for the scarce resource, need for financial and political superiority in terms of market and economy has been one of the factors that has resulted to petro-politics in South China. Disputes have risen associated with acquisition of islands in South china Sea. As the petroleum reserves, fishing and the resources associated with the sea diminished it became a source of tension among the neighboring countries. South China Sea is strategically placed for trade which has resulted to a lot of political and power interests affecting the petroleum industry. It has been argued by most scholars that lack of proper oil reserves and the scarcity of the resource coupled with political interference, both from within and outside has played a major role in the stagnating growth of the industry (Keyan, 2005).Through diplomacy there has been need for South China to improve its political relation with neighboring countries in order to secure large markets for the product. The political differences in South China have had a negative effect on the development of petroleum industry in the region. This has resulted to poor relations with the neighboring countries. These effects are still felt in the 21st century as there have been a lot of diplomatic efforts to restore peace and prevent conflicts with the neighboring countries. As earlier been noted, the strategic interests of the many claimants of territorial sovereignty is primarily driven the presence of vast fossil fuel reserves around the two islands of Paracels and Spratlys. According to Chinese officials, the region is estimated to have as high s 213 billion barrels of oil and this nearly ten times the estimate of the American experts which currently stands at 28billion barrels. On the other hand, the region also has n abundant natural gas reserves estimated to be around 266 trillion cubic feet and this is nearly 70% of the regions total petroleum resources. Lastly, the politics of the region has also been to some extent shaped by the fact that South China Sea remains the region’s busiest shipping lane and is currently home to a major fishing ground (World Bank, 1998). Implications of the interstate disputes in the South China Sea Over the last few years, the vast region of the South China Sea has continued to witness a significant interplay of inter state territorial disputes marked by constant manoeuvring. Consequently this has raised the possibility of a future energy war over the regions oil and gas resources. Today the region has drawn significant international focus for a diverse number of reasons. Despite the fact that China is the largest country in the region both economically, geographically and politically, there has been a significant determination from the other countries claiming the region (Keyan, 2005). Additionally almost all the countries involved in the dispute of the oil rich region have been increasingly expanding their law enforcement and military capabilities thereby further raising the possibilities of future military confrontation if the current crisis is not properly solved. For example, recently, Philippines and Vietnam have increasingly taken confrontational moves towards China. On the other hand, the petro-politics of the South China region has been further complicated by the entry and involvement of the other global powers particularly the United States (Pradeep, 2012). This been particularly attributed to the assertive posture of the countries involved in the dispute as well as the rapid rise of China as a major power with modern military capabilities. All these factors have been the primary concern of the global powers such as the United States. Although the United States believe has increased its military presence in the region arguing that it is international waters, China has always intercepted any US military reconnaissance missions in the region and this has further heightened tensions in the volatile region. America has also recently increased its assistance to most of the Southeast Asia countries and some of the claimants such as Vietnam, Taiwan and Philippines have not only increased their military spending but have recently ramped up their rhetoric regarding their claims and are routinely sending their naval and civilian boats into the contested region to test the positions of their adversaries. Chinese officials have always asserted that China is committed to peaceful bilateral solution to the crisis in the South China Sea. However its activities in the waters have largely been confrontational. According to Goodman (2005), the other related factors that have also resulted in escalated tension in the South China Sea include the recent changes in the Chinese foreign policy. Recently China issued new electronic passports which allegedly displayed the disputed areas of South China Sea as part of it’s the Chinese territory. New provincial regulations that appeared to allow Chinese maritime authorities to detain foreign vessels were also announced by China’s Hainan province. These recent changes in the Chinese foreign policy have caused further tension between mainland China and its neighbors. Generally the increasing dispute has caused a number of serious troubles to the regions political and economic stability. One of the most serious incidences occurred in 1974 between China and Vietnam when the Chinese decided to seize Paracels from Vietnam resulting in the death of more than 70 Vietnamese troops. On the other hand, The Philippines has also been increasingly involved in a number of skirmishes with Vietnamese, Chinese and Malaysian forces in the region. Currently The Philippines has accused Mainland China of increasing its military presence in the disputed areas and as the two countries remain engaged in the maritime standoff, tension continues to flare and this is particularly evidenced by the heightening political rhetoric and protests in the two countries over the disputed areas. Conclusion In conclusion, the strategic interests of the many claimants of territorial sovereignty of parts of the South China Sea is primarily driven the presence of vast fossil fuel reserves around the two islands of Paracels and Spratlys. Despite some of the geopolitical challenges attributed to the petro-politics of the region, South China Sea remains a region of global strategic significance particularly in terms of its rich petroleum energy and as a critical trade route. References Burgess, J. (2003). The Politics of the South China Sea: Territoriality and International Law, Security Dialogue 34, 1, 7-10. Chen, H.(2000). The PRCs South China Sea policy and strategies of occupation in the Paracel and Spratly Islands. Issues and Studies,30,4,91-131. Goodman, S. (2005, July 13). Big Shift in China's Oil Policy. Washington Post .pp.13. Pradeep K. (2012). India’s Maritime Interests and Future Engagement in South China Sea. Retrieved on December, 12, 2012 from http://maritimeindia.org/article/indias-maritime-interests-and-future-en Keyan Z. (2005). Law of the sea in East Asia: Issues and Prospects. London/New York: Rutledge Curzon. Manning, R. (2000).Asian Energy factor: Myths and dilemmas of energy, security and the pacific future. New York: Palgrave Wang, G. (2003). The Nanhai Trade: Early Chinese Trade in the South China Sea. New York: Marshall Cavendish International. Shen, J. (2002). China’s Sovereignty over the South China Sea Islands: A Historical Perspective. Chinese Journal of International Law 1, 1, 94-157. South China Sea: China, Vietnam Clash Over Oil Exploration, Fishing. International Business Times, Retrieved December 13, 2012, from http://www.ibtimes.com/south-china-sea-china-vietnam-clash-over-oil-expl World Bank, (1998). World Development Indicators. Washington, DC: World Bank. ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY Burgess, J. (2003). The Politics of the South China Sea: Territoriality and International Law', Security Dialogue 34, 1, 7-10. This is an exciting publication that focuses on the interplay between economics and geopolitics in the South China Sea as well as their potential role in the territorial dispute. The journal also discusses some of the security challenges associated with the conflict in the South East Asia. Chen, H. (2000). The PRCs South China Sea policy and strategies of occupation in the Paracel and Spratly Islands. Issues and Studies,30,4,91-131. The journal has highlighted various issues surrounding Chinas foreign policy changes and its current approach to the territorial conflict in the South China Sea. Keyan Z. (2005). Law of the sea in East Asia: Issues and Prospects. London/New York: Rutledge Curzon. Published in 2005, this is an interesting book which focuses on a number of issues that have contributed to the current conflict between countries claiming the South China Sea. Shen, J. (2002). China’s Sovereignty over the South China Sea Islands: A Historical Perspective. Chinese Journal of International Law 1,1, 94-157. Throughout this journal, Shen Jianming effectively discusses the Chinese perspective regarding the ownership of the South China Sea islands. The author also highlights major historical developments in the region. World Bank, (1998).World Development Indicators. Washington, DC: World Bank. Published by the World Bank, the book critically discusses some of the economic factors that influence the politics in the disputed South China Sea. APPENDIX A: Shen, J. (2002). China’s Sovereignty over the South China Sea Islands: A Historical Perspective. Chinese Journal of International Law 1, 1, 94-157. The Chinese Journal of International Law is the leading forum for articles on international law by Chinese scholars and on international law issues relating to China. An independent, peer-reviewed research journal edited primarily by scholars from mainland China, and published in association with the Chinese Society of International Law, Beijing, and Wuhan University Institute of International Law, Wuhan, the Journal is a general international law journal with a focus on materials and viewpoints from and/or about China, other parts of Asia, and the broader developing world. Keyan Z. (2005). Law of the sea in East Asia: Issues and Prospects. London/New York: Rutledge Curzon. Book Description: Law of the Sea in East Asia selects the most prominent maritime legal issues that have emerged since the post-LOS Convention era for a detailed discussion and assessment. The current marine legal order in East Asia is based on the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (LOS Convention) and accordingly coastal states in the region are obliged to cooperate amongst themselves to exercise their rights and perform their duties. Burgess, J. (2003). The Politics of the South China Sea: Territoriality and International Law', Security Dialogue 34, 1, 7-10. Read More