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Representatives for both Cambodia and Thailand on Tuesday delivered opening statements during the first meeting of a United Nations (UN) sanctioned arbitration process intended to resolve a long-running maritime dispute between the neighbouring countries.
The meeting, which was held in Singapore, served as the first step in the compulsory conciliation process under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), launched by the Cambodian government.
The neighbouring Southeast Asian countries both claim rights to parts of the same seabed in the Gulf of Thailand, which contains large, exploitable reserves of natural gas and other valuable resources. Known as the “Overlapping Claims Area” (OCA), this 26,000-square-kilometer zone sits on top of massive hydrocarbon deposits, with geological assessments estimating a total monetary value close to $300 billion.
At the core of the dispute lies overlapping maritime boundary maps drawn by Cambodia in 1972 and Thailand in 1973, which neither country can agree on. While Cambodia has expressed a desire to bypass border arguments in favor of a Joint Development Area, which would allow the countries to split energy revenues equally, Thailand has rejected this in favour of settling the territorial boundaries first.
Relations between the countries further deteriorated and resulted in armed combat along the border, leading to the deaths of several dozen civilians and soldiers and the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people. Following the escalation in hostilities, Thailand unilaterally terminated a 25-year-old memorandum of understanding (MoU) meant to resolve overlapping claims.
With bilateral diplomatic channels firmly deadlocked, Cambodian officials drew upon the rarely used Annex V mechanism of UNCLOS to bring Thailand before an independent commission to settle the drawn-out dispute.
“This is not unilateral action,” Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Moha Borvor Thipadei Hun Manet said at the time. “It is an effort to resolve the dispute peacefully, through international law, and in good faith.”
Speaking before the conciliation committee Tuesday, Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn reiterated his government’s intentions, stating that his country was seeking a treaty with Thailand to delimit a single, all-purpose maritime boundary.
“In the alternative, Cambodia would be prepared to conclude an agreement with Thailand for the joint development and equitable sharing of resources between the two states,” he said.
Thailand, however, has maintained its long-standing legal approach, with Minister of Foreign Affairs Sihasak Phuangketkeow making it clear that the sole scope of these proceedings must be boundary delimitation – drawing the physical border lines first. While agreeing to engage in the UNCLOS conciliation “in good faith”, Thailand continues to prioritize national sovereignty and border demarcation over Cambodia’s suggested revenue-sharing models.
The UNCLOS conciliation commission functions as an independent, five-member diplomatic mediation panel administered by the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), consisting of two experts chosen by Cambodia, two by Thailand, and an independent Chair. Over 12 months, the committee will review cartographic evidence and legal arguments to draft fair, equitable compromises for the maritime border.
As the independent commission begins its work, all eyes are on Singapore to see if structured mediation can turn a highly charged maritime dispute into a historic blueprint for regional cooperation.
The post Thailand and Cambodia begin UN-backed conciliation process over conflicting maritime boundary claims appeared first on JURIST - News.
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The meeting, which was held in Singapore, served as the first step in the compulsory conciliation process under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), launched by the Cambodian government.
The neighbouring Southeast Asian countries both claim rights to parts of the same seabed in the Gulf of Thailand, which contains large, exploitable reserves of natural gas and other valuable resources. Known as the “Overlapping Claims Area” (OCA), this 26,000-square-kilometer zone sits on top of massive hydrocarbon deposits, with geological assessments estimating a total monetary value close to $300 billion.
At the core of the dispute lies overlapping maritime boundary maps drawn by Cambodia in 1972 and Thailand in 1973, which neither country can agree on. While Cambodia has expressed a desire to bypass border arguments in favor of a Joint Development Area, which would allow the countries to split energy revenues equally, Thailand has rejected this in favour of settling the territorial boundaries first.
Relations between the countries further deteriorated and resulted in armed combat along the border, leading to the deaths of several dozen civilians and soldiers and the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people. Following the escalation in hostilities, Thailand unilaterally terminated a 25-year-old memorandum of understanding (MoU) meant to resolve overlapping claims.
With bilateral diplomatic channels firmly deadlocked, Cambodian officials drew upon the rarely used Annex V mechanism of UNCLOS to bring Thailand before an independent commission to settle the drawn-out dispute.
“This is not unilateral action,” Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Moha Borvor Thipadei Hun Manet said at the time. “It is an effort to resolve the dispute peacefully, through international law, and in good faith.”
Speaking before the conciliation committee Tuesday, Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn reiterated his government’s intentions, stating that his country was seeking a treaty with Thailand to delimit a single, all-purpose maritime boundary.
“In the alternative, Cambodia would be prepared to conclude an agreement with Thailand for the joint development and equitable sharing of resources between the two states,” he said.
Thailand, however, has maintained its long-standing legal approach, with Minister of Foreign Affairs Sihasak Phuangketkeow making it clear that the sole scope of these proceedings must be boundary delimitation – drawing the physical border lines first. While agreeing to engage in the UNCLOS conciliation “in good faith”, Thailand continues to prioritize national sovereignty and border demarcation over Cambodia’s suggested revenue-sharing models.
The UNCLOS conciliation commission functions as an independent, five-member diplomatic mediation panel administered by the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), consisting of two experts chosen by Cambodia, two by Thailand, and an independent Chair. Over 12 months, the committee will review cartographic evidence and legal arguments to draft fair, equitable compromises for the maritime border.
As the independent commission begins its work, all eyes are on Singapore to see if structured mediation can turn a highly charged maritime dispute into a historic blueprint for regional cooperation.
The post Thailand and Cambodia begin UN-backed conciliation process over conflicting maritime boundary claims appeared first on JURIST - News.
Continue reading...
Note: We don't have any responsibilities about this news. Its been posted here by Feed Reader and we had no controls and checking on it. And because News posted here will be deleted automatically after 21 days, threads are closed so that no one spend time to post and discuss here. You can always check the source and discuss in their site.