Security and the Law of the Sea in East Asia: Navigational Regimes and Exclusive Economic Zones

Abstract

The law of the sea provides the legal framework for national rights and obligations at sea, while it is also an important catalyst for regional security cooperation and dialogue. However, the law of the sea can also be a potential source of tension. All the critical issues with resolving ambiguities in the law of the sea, and the different points of view on particular jurisdictional issues and the freedoms of navigation and overflight, may be found in the seas of East Asia. The 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and customary international law identify three distinct navigational regimes: innocent passage applying to the territorial sea and archipelagic waters; transit passage through straits used for international navigation; and archipelagic sea lanes passage through archipelagic waters. This chapter examines key areas of disagreement in the region with regard to the freedoms of navigation and overflight, including those in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ), and discusses some recent incidents involving these issues.