JAKARTA, Indonesia — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Wednesday reiterated the Philippines’ assertion of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the rule of law in settling maritime disputes during the 26th ASEAN-China Summit here.
While Vietnam and China are close ideologically, the long-standing and increasingly volatile maritime dispute could bring Southeast Asia’s Manila and Hanoi closer together, say analysts.
Southeast Asia is home to the Straits of Malacca and Singapore, one of the world’s most important sea lines of communication. The closure of the straits to international navigation may adversely affect the well-being of the global economy. On February 11, 2022, the Biden administration announced the new Indo-Pacific strategy, which will continue to deliver on AUKUS. For centuries, the proposed Thai Canal Project has been planned to revolutionize the shipping industry by bypassing the busy waters of the Straits of Malacca and Singapore. If the canal is built under the US Indo-Pacific Strategy, the pre-eminence of the Straits of Malacca and Singapore will not last long. This article analyzes the potential increase of navigation of nuclearpowered submarines through the Straits of Malacca and Singapore and its ensuing environmental implications from a viewpoint of international law. It discusses effects of the proposed canal plan in influencing the shipping industry should this “dream