Defence Lecturette Notes: South China Sea Dispute!

China, Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei, Taiwan, and Malaysia have different, sometimes overlapping, territorial claims over the South China Sea, based on various accounts of history and geography.

Over the years, these countries are involved in the dispute for the control of islands and the resources present in this area. Many countries, including the U.S.A., are also very active in the South China Sea through its military presence to support China's neighboring nations and to tackle Chinese aggression.

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Claims of countries:

China claims over 80 percent of the disputed area and "Nine-Dash Line" is a geographical marker used by it to assert its claims over a stretch of 2,000km from mainland China,to waters close to Indonesia and Malaysia.
Vietnam claims the Paracel Islands and the Spratly Islands.
The Philippines Claims ownership of the Scarborough Shoal and Spratly archipelago.
Brunei and Malaysia have claims over southern parts of the South China Sea and parts of Spratly Islands.

History of Conflict

1974: the Chinese seized the Paracels island from Vietnam, killing more than 70 troops of Vietnam.

1988: Vietnam and China clashed in the Spratlys, with Vietnam again coming off worse, losing more than 60 sailors.

2012: China and the Philippines engaged in a lengthy maritime stand-off, accusing each other of intrusions in the Scarborough Shoal.

Late 2012: Unverified claims that the Chinese navy sabotaged two Vietnamese exploration operations, led to large anti-China protests on the streets of Vietnam.

2013: the Philippines said it was taking China to a U.N. tribunal under the auspices of the U.N. Convention on the Laws of the Sea, to challenge China's claims.

2014: China's introduction drilling rig into waters near the Paracel Islands led to multiple collisions between Vietnamese and Chinese ships.

2020: the Vietnamese accused a Chinese patrol ship of ramming and sinking a Vietnamese fishing boat.

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Why is South China sea important?

The Sea is a crucial commercial route, connecting Asia with Europe and Africa, and its seabed is rich with natural resources. One-third of global shipping, or a total of U.S. $3.37 trillion of international trade, passes through the South China Sea.
About 80 percent of oil imports of china is via the Strait of Malacca, Indonesia, and then through the South China Sea to reach China's mainland.
The Sea has significant reserves of natural resources, such as natural gas and oil. According to a report, this area contains 22 billion barrels of oil and 290 trillion cubic feet of gas.
The Sea also accounts for 10 percent of the world's fisheries, making it a vital source of food for millions of people.

Is there any resolution in sight?

Southeast Asian nations do not want a bilateral solution with China.
But, In recent developments, it seems that claimant countries do not want to get involved in a conflict with China anymore and that's why they are adopting a softer stance against it.
For example, Vietnam, the most outspoken critic of China, has softened its stance. In April 2018, Vietnam's government said it would be willing to hold talks with China to resolve disputes in the area "following international law."
ASEAN has been working with the Chinese government on an official code of conduct to avoid clashes in the disputed sea areas. A binding agreement has been discussed for years to little avail, but in August 2018, it was revealed all the parties had agreed on a single draft negotiating text.

India's Stand on South China Sea Issue

Our country supports freedom of navigation and overflight, unimpeded commerce, part of the principles of international law, defined under the UNCLOS.
India has not acted in any defence cooperation, navigational patrols, and naval exercises with the claimant nations in the South China Sea (only recently it conducted a naval exercise with Vietnam).
After the recent developments with Japan and Russia, India might want to raise its strategic presence in the South China Sea, but it is not so. There are two reasons for that.
Reason 1: India is not a party to the maritime territorial disputes in the region and does not want to interfere.
Reason 2: India wants to preserve its "Wuhan Consensus" , in which both nations(India and China) respect each others' spheres of influence in their adjacent water bodies.