TheJakartaPost

Please Update your browser

Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.

Jakarta Post

Timor-Leste, Australia and Asia's contested maritime order

Timor Leste-Australia dispute and conciliation process offers salient lessons for contemporary maritime order.

Evan A. Laksmana (The Jakarta Post)
Premium
Seattle
Fri, September 22, 2017

Share This Article

Change Size

Timor-Leste, Australia and Asia's contested maritime order An oil rig in the middle of South China Sea. (Shutterstock/File)

T

he Permanent Court of Arbitration, acting as a registry for a conciliation commission established under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), announced on Sept. 1 that Timor-Leste and Australia have agreed on their maritime boundary delimitation. The “package” deal would also address the legal status of the Greater Sunrise gas field (and a special regime to manage it) as well as pathways to develop and share the resources.

Despite the resolution, the parties have yet to formalize the agreement and need to negotiate some remaining issues. All the details will remain confidential until then.

The dispute and conciliation process offers salient lessons for contemporary maritime order.

On the one hand, the conciliation process is unprecedented; this is the first time it has been activated in UNCLOS history. It also seems to be going against the regional trend. According to Massachussets Institute of Technology’s (MIT) Taylor Fravel, only 14 percent of 28 maritime boundary disputes in Asia have been completely resolved.

Dili and Canberra’s commitment to a peaceful resolution is thus commendable. But the complexity of the dispute should also caution us from aggressively pushing the narrative of a “rulesbased order” governing maritime Asia. As if it is always crystal-clear what the rules are and who has upheld or broken them and how.

In fact, the arrival of UNCLOS in 1994 further complicated the region’s patchy and overlapping maritime domain. While UNCLOS provides the framework for a peaceful resolution of maritime disputes, it does not predetermine the processes or results. Instead, it calls on the disputants to find an “equitable solution” themselves.

Consider some of the legal complexities surrounding the TimorAustralia case. Up until today, there has been no permanent maritime boundary between the two states. Timor-Leste is not a party to agreements made between Indonesia and Australia prior to its independence. Any subsequent Timor-Australia agreements since then have also been premised on the temporary suspension of delimitation talks to facilitate joint resource development.

to Read Full Story

  • Unlimited access to our web and app content
  • e-Post daily digital newspaper
  • No advertisements, no interruptions
  • Privileged access to our events and programs
  • Subscription to our newsletters
or

Purchase access to this article for

We accept

TJP - Visa
TJP - Mastercard
TJP - GoPay

Redirecting you to payment page

Pay per article

Timor-Leste, Australia and Asia's contested maritime order

Rp 29,000 / article

1
Create your free account
By proceeding, you consent to the revised Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.
Already have an account?

2
  • Palmerat Barat No. 142-143
  • Central Jakarta
  • DKI Jakarta
  • Indonesia
  • 10270
  • +6283816779933
2
Total Rp 29,000
{

Your Opinion Matters

Share your experiences, suggestions, and any issues you've encountered on The Jakarta Post. We're here to listen.

Enter at least 30 characters
0 / 30

Thank You

Thank you for sharing your thoughts. We appreciate your feedback.