Cadet Killian Buckley's Blog

Map of “Territorial Disputes in the Waters Near China” from the New York Times

There are numerous territorial disputes in the region of East Asia. Specifically, there are disputes over maritime boarders in the South China Seas.  A majority of these disputes are between China and its neighbors.  These maritime boarder disputes are a question of sovereignty and access to resources; such as fishing and underwater oil extraction.  China is seeking to control these boarders to increase their power within the region. ‘They are a hegemonic power within the region due to their economic power, size, resources, and population.  China is seeking to maintain their hegemonic power in the region through these strategic and economically essential maritime boarders.

For example, there was a dispute between the Vietnamese and the Chinese regarding the Chinese oil rig named HD 981.  This rig was once placed near, or according to the Vietnamese, within a Vietnamese maritime territory. This maritime territory was utilized by the Vietnamese as strictly an economic zone. Therefore, an issue occurred when it was thought that China was intruding upon this area for their own economic gains from the HD 981. Eventually, the rig was moved closer to Chinese islands.  However, this was not before the Vietnamese ships completed operations and “rammed” several Chinese commercial vessels over 1,400 times. On the other hand, Vietnam had 30 destroyed ships from these operations.

In conclusion, the situation over maritime territories is tense and will continue to be for the near future. The region will continue to struggle with this issue as China seeks to expand its power, particularly its maritime power.  The future of this issue remains uncertain. However, what is certain is that China will continue this push forward in search of greater control of the waterways and the resources that these waterways offer.

Sources:

http://scholarbank.nus.edu.sg/bitstream/handle/10635/15352/MASHAOHUATHESIS.pdf?sequence=1

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/10/world/asia/a-view-from-the-sea-as-china-flexes-muscle.html?_r=0