Digital Commons Network^™

Island-Hopping With Chinese Characteristics—What The Prc Is Doing In The Pacific Islands, Why It Matters, And Why The Time Has Come To “Block And Build”, Cleo Paskal

Naval War College Review

China’s engagement with western Pacific island nations and its pursuit of influence over their affairs are driven by its conception of comprehensive national power and a need for reliable access from which it might challenge the U.S. military and eventually displace it from the region.

China’S New Law On Foreign Relations: Transforming The Rules-Based International Order With Chinese Characteristics, Raul (Pete) Pedrozo

International Law Studies

In 2023 China adopted a comprehensive Law on Foreign Relations. Although the law is intended to shape China’s diplomatic relations and its cultural, economic, and other exchanges, as well as China’s relations with the United Nations and other international organizations, implementation of the law will be guided by (inter alia) Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. The law makes clear that China’s foreign relations will be conducted to uphold its system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, safeguard its sovereignty, unification and territorial integrity, and promote its economic and social development. This revisionist “rule by …

The European Union’S Quest To Become A Global Maritime-Security Provider, Christian Bueger, Timothy Edmunds

Naval War College Review

The European Union (EU) seeks to become a global maritime-security actor, yet strategic challenges influence its maritime-security strategy process. Is there a distinctive and coherent EU approach to global maritime security, and how should the EU address the growing range of maritime challenges, including the intensification of militarized competition in the Indo-Pacific?

“Nationals” At Forty: From An Undefined Unclos Term To Due Diligence Obligations On The State Of Nationality To Combat Iuu Fishing, Arron N. Honniball, Valentin J. Schatz

International Law Studies

Illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing represents a global common concern, incorporating large-scale and highly mobile environmental, economic, and sometimes criminal, concerns. IUU fishing can result in dysfunctional fisheries governance, including through the non-application of relevant conservation and management measures. Non-application results, in part, from both incomplete implementation and insufficient enforcement by flag, coastal, port, and market States, and the States of nationality. This article focuses on the State of nationality that may exercise territorial and extraterritorial prescriptive jurisdiction on the basis of the active personality principle of jurisdiction. Firstly, global instruments have long held the State of nationality as …

Enhancing The Security Of Shipping In Southeast Asia: The Relevance Of International Law, Robert Beckman

International Law Studies

This article outlines the principles of international law governing the right to exercise jurisdiction over ships. It then explains the relevance of UN international crimes conventions to the security of commercial ships. These conventions give States parties jurisdiction to arrest persons present in their territory who are alleged to have committed such crimes and an obligation to either prosecute or extradite them. It then explains the measures that have been taken by the International Maritime Organization to enhance the security of commercial shipping, including its Code of Practice on preventing piracy and “armed robbery against ships” and its measures to …

Australia’S Maritime Security Challenges: Juggling International Law And Informal Agreements In An International Rules-Based Order, Natalie Klein

International Law Studies

Australia has voiced its commitment to the “rules-based order” since 2008 and the rules-based order has become a touchpoint of both Australian defense and foreign policy. Australia has also voiced its commitment to international law, particularly the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, to meet challenges to the maritime rules-based order, including in the South and East China Seas. References to international law have often been bundled in or left adjacent to the rules-based order and the two terms are not synonymous. This article discusses the role of international law in the rules-based order as it relates to …

China’S Iuu Fishing Fleet: Pariah Of The World’S Oceans, Raul (Pete) Pedrozo

International Law Studies

The leading global maritime security threat today is illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing. Left unchecked, IUU fishing exacerbates the depletion of fish stocks, thereby contributing to global geo-political instability by increasing tension among competing distant water fishing fleets, threatening the sustainability of coastal States’ fisheries, and damaging fragile ecosystems. This article reviews the regulatory framework applicable to IUU fishing. It then discusses China’s predatory fishing practices in various regions of the world. The article then examines the principle of exclusive flag State jurisdiction on the high seas and suggests that Chinese distant water fishing vessels that change their name …

Does The Revised U.S. South China Sea Policy Go Far Enough?, Raul (Pete) Pedrozo

International Law Studies

The United States issued a statement on July 13, 2020, outlining the U.S. Position on Maritime Claims in the South China Sea. The statement supplements existing U.S. policy for the South China Sea, making clear that the People’s Republic of China’s claims to offshore resources across most of the South China Sea are unlawful. Still, the revised U.S. policy does not go far enough to contest China's faulty claims in the South China Sea. This article proposes specific issues that the revised U.S. policy should address.

Letter From Port Moresby, John D. Moore

Naval War College Review

As the world shifts away from the global war on terrorism toward renewed great-power rivalry, areas previously considered strategically peripheral offer the United States and its allies both opportunity and challenge. Papua New Guinea (PNG), with its strategic location in the southwest Pacific, is poised to play a role in this new “Great Game.”

2022 Conference - Unclos At 40: Program, Center For Oceans Law & Policy

Conference on Oceans Law & Policy

Conference sessions address “UNCLOS at 40”. Panels: Overcoming the Threat of IUU fishing; Uses and Claims on the Continental Shelf; Climate Change, Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction & New Technologies; The COVID-19 Pandemic Through the Lens of UNCLOS; Capacity Building in the Law of the Sea: Issues and Experiences; Asymmetric Security Challenges in Regional Disputes; Emerging Challenges to 1982 UNCLOS and International Law.

The 45th Annual Conference is co-organized with the Maritime Institute of Malaysia (MIMA).

Refining Japan’S Integrative Position On The Territorial Sovereignty Of The Senkaku Islands, Atsuko Kanehara

International Law Studies

China and Japan face a tense situation in the East China Sea over conflicting sovereignty claims to the Senkaku Islands. In order to cope with the situation appropriately and precisely, Japan needs to thoroughly analyze it from the dual perspectives of the law of the sea and the law of territorial acquisition. Japan denies any existence of a dispute with China over the territorial sovereignty of the islands. The legal effects of the existence of a “dispute” need to be understood and considered by Japan when it constructs its position from the perspectives of the law of the sea and …

Water Under The Bridge?—The Revival Of New Zealand-United States Maritime Cooperation, Steven Paget

Naval War College Review

The ongoing effective revival of ANZUS relations is vital to allowing the New Zealand Defence Force to fulfill the ever-increasing range of tasks expected of it. Impending capability-replacement decisions provide an opportunity to increase the capacity of the NZDF to operate with the United States in an environment that makes maritime cooperation especially important.

From Orbit To Ocean—Fixing Southeast Asia’S Remote-Sensing Blind Spots, Gregory B. Poling

Naval War College Review

Improving maritime domain awareness (MDA) in Southeast Asia is critical not only for regional states but for the national-security interests of the United States. MDA in the coming decades will be dominated by cheaper, more-efficient remote-sensing tools, and the United States and other outside parties should shift toward introducing partners to the booming private-sector offerings in remote sensing.

From The Editors, Robert Ayer

Naval War College Review

No abstract provided.

Winter 2021 Full Issue, The U.S. Naval War College

Naval War College Review

No abstract provided.

Maritime Police Law Of The People’S Republic Of China, Raul (Pete) Pedrozo

International Law Studies

China’s new Maritime Police Law (MPL) purports to regulate the duties of China’s maritime police agencies, including the China Coast Guard, and safeguard China’s sovereignty, security, and rights and interest. The MPL has potentially far-reaching application, as China claims extensive maritime areas off its mainland and in the South China Sea. This expansive application of maritime law enforcement jurisdiction is problematic given that most of China’s maritime claims are inconsistent with international law. To the extent that the MPL purports to assert jurisdiction over foreign flagged vessels in disputed areas or on the high seas, it contravenes international law. Numerous …

Sea Shepherd: The Evolution Of An Eco-Vigilante To Legitimized Maritime Capacity Builder, Claude Berube

CIWAG Case Studies

(MIWS/03 - Maritime Irregular Warfare Studies, Book 3)

This case study focuses on the evolution and development of a non-state group, Sea Shepherd, in the maritime domain. While some might argue that this organization is too small to warrant the attention of the U.S. Navy, others, including the author, argue that its cross-jurisdictional activities and international reach provide important insight into how other groups, or even states, with small maritime capabilities, might challenge international maritime norms.

Iuu Fishing As A National Security Threat: Revisiting India’S Domestic Framework And Compliance With International Regimes, Pooja Bhatt

International Law Studies

Within India, illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing typically has been viewed as a non-traditional security concern that includes food and economic security, as well as broader societal and political issues. This article argues for understanding IUU fishing in a broader and deeper way and to view this issue as a traditional security threat. Several developments merit this approach, including the threat posed by foreign fishing vessels near Indian waters. Such distant water fishing vessels have been found fishing illegally around the world. On several occasions, these vessels are present near the exclusive economic zone of other states, raising serious …

China’S Maritime Law Enforcement Activities In The South China Sea, Diane Desierto

International Law Studies

This article evaluates China’s public justifications for its unilateral maritime law enforcement activities in the South China Sea, including recent incidents affecting Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Malaysia, against the binding international legal requirements of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties to the South China Sea, and the 2016 Permanent Court of Arbitration UNCLOS Annex VII arbitral award In the Matter of the South China Sea Arbitration. China’s unilateral maritime law enforcement activities in the South China Sea do not comply with UNCLOS and applicable international …

The “Indo” In The “Indo-Pacific”—An Indian View, Yogendra Kumar, Probal K. Ghosh

Naval War College Review

While some security arrangements exist in the Indo-Pacific, there is no overall regional security architecture, geopolitical headwinds are causing existing arrangements to wobble, and loose groupings of countries are emerging either to strengthen or to weaken those arrangements. India’s strategic stakes are growing, but it faces capacity and capability issues that impose prioritization constraints.

The Peacetime Right Of Approach And Visit And Effective Security Council Sanctions Enforcement At Sea, Craig H. Allen

International Law Studies

Naval forces deployed across the world’s seas to enforce counterproliferation sanctions imposed by the U.N. Security Council must surmount any number of operational and legal challenges. High seas boardings by any State other than the vessel’s flag State remain controversial. The 1982 Law of the Sea Convention’s high seas articles carefully balance the principles of freedom of navigation and exclusive flag-State jurisdiction with the shared interest in ensuring effective enforcement of laws against certain serious offenses. The peacetime right of visit is a limited but invaluable compromise between those competing interests. Some commentators have suggested expanding the right to address …

Strategy For The Development Of Maritime Activities Of The Russian Federation Until 2030, Russia Maritime Studies Institute, Anna Davis, Ryan Vest

RMSI Research

Russia is taking a systematic approach to developing its presence in the maritime domain. Three documents published by Moscow since 2015 provide the roadmap for Russia’s global maritime ambitions. These are the Maritime Doctrine of the Russian Federation (2015), the Fundamentals of the State Policy of the Russian Federation in the Field of Naval Operations to 2030 (2017), and this document, the 2019 Strategy for the Development of Russia’s Maritime Activities to 2030. The Maritime Doctrine and the Naval Fundamentals articulate high-level policy objectives and provide a set of ways and means for achieving those objectives. In contrast, the Strategy …

Maritime Autonomous Vehicles Within The International Law Framework To Enhance Maritime Security, Natalie Klein

International Law Studies

Technological developments necessitate a review of long-standing and diverse international legal principles. The law of the sea is no exception in this regard where the introduction of different Maritime Autonomous Vehicles (MAVs) has prompted consideration of how the laws of naval warfare and rules governing the safety of international shipping accommodate these craft. This paper shifts the focus to the international laws relating to maritime security. It assesses how well the existing international legal framework for maritime security can account for the use of MAVs by law enforcement agencies and by non-state actors who are turning to MAVs for criminal …

Ciwag Maritime Irregular Warfare Workshop Workbook, The U.S. Naval War College

CIWAG Events

CIWAG hosted a Maritime Irregular Warfare Workshop on 25-26 June, 2019. The invited U.S. and international academics discussed the strategic and operational challenges associated with irregular warfare in the maritime domain. Participating scholars presented proposals for CIWAG’s new maritime focused case studies series. This workbook contains the first cases in the new “Maritime Irregular Warfare Studies” series.

2019 Conference - “Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction: Intractable Challenges & Potential Solutions”: Program, Center For Oceans Law & Policy

Conference on Oceans Law & Policy

Tuesday, May 14, 2019 to Thursday, May 16, 2019 | World Maritime University, Sasakawa Auditorium, Malmö, Sweden

The conference discussed the development of an internationally legally binding instrument under UNCLOS on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ). Our 43rd Annual Conference was co-organized with the World Maritime University--Sasakawa Global Ocean Institute at the World Maritime University and the Nippon Foundation.

Purchase Conference Proceedings Volume.

Twenty-Third International Seapower Symposium: Report Of The Proceedings, The U.S. Naval War College

International Seapower Symposium

No abstract provided.

Escalation At Sea: Stability And Instability In Maritime East Asia, Ian Bowers

Naval War College Review

Low-level instability is to be expected with maritime boundary disputes or when power competition occurs at sea; however, sustained escalatory cycles are unlikely because of the characteristics of the maritime strategic environment.

Research & Debate—A Maritime Traffic-Tracking System: Cornerstone Of Maritime Homeland Defense, Guy Thomas

Naval War College Review

No abstract provided.

Change And Continuity—The U.S. Coast Guard Today, Thomas H. Collins

Naval War College Review

The year 2003 was a watershed for today’s Coast Guard. The Coast Guard’s roles as a military service, as a federal law-enforcement agency, as a regulatory authority, and as a member of the new Department of Homeland Security place it squarely at the center of national initiatives to reduce security risks to our nation.

Full Spring 2004 Issue, The U.S. Naval War College

Naval War College Review

No abstract provided.