Author: Mark Pernia
The claimants to these islands are namely: Brunei as part of Brunei's Exclusive Economic Zone, the People's Republic of China as part of Hainan province; Malaysia as part of the state of Sabah; the Philippines as part of Palawan province; and the Republic of China (Taiwan) as part of Kaohsiung municipality, and lastly, Vietnam as part of Khánh Hòa Province. This dispute is quite complex because all claimants have a valid argument which is why up to now there has not been a clear cut decision on who is truly the valid sovereign. As a resolution to avoid war and animosity, all nations concerned decided that they would jointly cooperate in its development and equal sharing of whatever natural / oil resources that may be discovered in the area. Although in recent years there have been some violations to this agreement, like the building of an oil rig by the Chinese guarded by modern naval battleships. They even shooed away Filipino fishermen who were fishing nearby. Sad to say we cannot really coerce by force the Chinese because of our ill equipped military forces. The only solution is through diplomacy with the help of the U.N. and hopefully binding treaties which will be binding to all parties concerned. It is my belief that we do have sovereignty over the Spratly islands since it is within the bounds of the internationally recognized EEZ or exclusive economic zone which is considered to be part of one’s territory as stated by President Aquino in his recent comment regarding this matter. But the fact still remains that the law among nations are subject to interpretation and no real body that defines them and polices such laws. As such, the most viable option is through the U.N. to employ pressure, coercion, and even sanctions if necessary to ensure that no violations occur and that the peace and stability of the region is maintained.
World War Stories - In International relations, there has always been some form of inevitable conflict between two or more nations. One such form of conflict is territorial disputes, where two or more states argue and contend sovereignty over a piece of land or area, the reasons for their claims are varied and may range from ancestral domain or historically occupied by their race or predominantly the same culture to the disputed islands as being inclusive of their territorial boundaries. An example of such is the conflict over the Spratly islands which are located near the South China Sea and near Palawan.
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The claimants to these islands are namely: Brunei as part of Brunei's Exclusive Economic Zone, the People's Republic of China as part of Hainan province; Malaysia as part of the state of Sabah; the Philippines as part of Palawan province; and the Republic of China (Taiwan) as part of Kaohsiung municipality, and lastly, Vietnam as part of Khánh Hòa Province. This dispute is quite complex because all claimants have a valid argument which is why up to now there has not been a clear cut decision on who is truly the valid sovereign. As a resolution to avoid war and animosity, all nations concerned decided that they would jointly cooperate in its development and equal sharing of whatever natural / oil resources that may be discovered in the area. Although in recent years there have been some violations to this agreement, like the building of an oil rig by the Chinese guarded by modern naval battleships. They even shooed away Filipino fishermen who were fishing nearby. Sad to say we cannot really coerce by force the Chinese because of our ill equipped military forces. The only solution is through diplomacy with the help of the U.N. and hopefully binding treaties which will be binding to all parties concerned. It is my belief that we do have sovereignty over the Spratly islands since it is within the bounds of the internationally recognized EEZ or exclusive economic zone which is considered to be part of one’s territory as stated by President Aquino in his recent comment regarding this matter. But the fact still remains that the law among nations are subject to interpretation and no real body that defines them and polices such laws. As such, the most viable option is through the U.N. to employ pressure, coercion, and even sanctions if necessary to ensure that no violations occur and that the peace and stability of the region is maintained.World War 1 Pictures and Stories
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