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Indonesia-Philippines EEZ boundary brings certainty, security
Although Southeast Asia might be occupied with a story of unresolved maritime boundaries, this year, the region witnessed a success story of resolved boundary negotiations.
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Lone vessel: A documentary and photobooks on Maritime Expedition to the East of the Archipelago highlight the plight of fishermen in eastern Indonesia. (Ekspedisi Maritim Timur Nusantara/-)
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lthough Southeast Asia might be occupied with a story of unresolved maritime boundaries, this year, the region witnessed a success story of resolved boundary negotiations. Indonesia and the Philippines have completed their respective domestic procedures for entry with the Agreement on the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) Boundary, initially signed in 2014.
Indonesia ratified the treaty in the form of Law No. 4/2017, while the Philippines recently secured the Senate’s approval with Resolution No. 1048.
Having completed their respective domestic procedures, the foreign ministers of both parties are scheduled to exchange instruments of ratification on Aug. 1 on the sidelines of the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting in Bangkok. The agreement will enter into force on the day the exchange takes place.
The entry into force of this maritime boundary treaty between Indonesia and the Philippines signifies at least three important points.
First, the treaty marks the culmination of a long process of maritime boundary negotiations over a huge maritime area. Both countries started the negotiations over 20 years ago. The negotiations intensified in 2011, before finally reaching an agreement in 2014. The boundary divides the EEZ in the southern part of the Mindanao Sea and the northern part of the Sulawesi Sea and in the southern section of the Pacific Ocean.
According to the Geospatial Information Agency, the segments in the Sulawesi Sea and the Mindanao Sea are 356.5 and 131.8 nautical miles long respectively. Meanwhile, the length of the Pacific Ocean section is 139.2 nautical miles. With a total delimitation line of 627.5 nautical miles, the EEZ boundary line between Indonesia and the Philippines will become Indonesia’s longest maritime boundary.
Second, the reaching of the final process of the agreement by using principles and guidance of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is a testament to the continuous cooperation between Indonesia and the Philippines in the development of the law of the sea as well as proof of their commitment to respecting international law.
