MANILA, Philippines — The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is the answer to settle maritime disputes over the South China Sea, an Indonesian official said.
Arif Havas Oegroseno, Indonesian Ambassador to the European Union, said that rival claimants correctly resorting to UNCLOS is a lesson from successful settlement of the Philippines-Indonesia boundaries.
“Whether you like it or not, the current prevailing law to settle maritime boundaries is UNCLOS,” Oegroseno said in an essay for the Rajaratnam School of International Studies.
“This is true regardless of your historical record, even if it is 115 years old,” he added.
China uses a nine-dash line roughly based on historical accounts to assert its claim over 80 percent of the South China Sea, also claimed in parts by the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei.
The Philippines argues that it is entitled to 200 nautical miles exclusive economic zone as indicated in UNCLOS.