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31. Bay of Bengal: ITLOS' first ruling in favour of Bangladesh

Author:
Jalila Abdul Jalil
Publication Date:
05-2011
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Maritime Institute of Malaysia
Abstract:
Wednesday, 14th March 2012, marked an important date when the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) delivered its judgment on a maritime boundary delimitation dispute between Bangladesh and Myanmar in the Bay of Bengal. The ruling, by a vote of 21 to 1, awarded Bangladesh territorial and full 200 nautical miles (nm) economic rights as well as a substantial share of the outer continental shelf beyond 200 nm. The Tribunal also awarded a full 12 nm territorial sea around St. Martin's Island to Bangladesh. The conclusion of the dispute now opens up opportunities for exploration and exploitation of petroleum and natural gas in the bay.
Topic:
Economics, International Law, International Trade and Finance, Maritime Commerce, and Territorial Disputes
Political Geography:
Bangladesh, South Asia, Island, Southeast Asia, and Myanmar

32. Unblocking Turkey's EU Accession

Author:
Nathalie Tocci
Publication Date:
07-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Insight Turkey
Institution:
SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
Abstract:
Debates over Turkey's application for EU membership are rife with pessimism nowadays. Much of the gloom comes from the many obstacles either directly or indirectly posed by the Cyprus conflict and its manifold repercussions on EU-Turkey relations. Resolving the Cyprus conflict remains the only means to untie the Gordian knot at the heart of Turkey's troubled accession process, but a settlement of the conflict on the island may not be in sight. However, hidden within the technicalities of the post-Lisbon EU decision-making process may be a ray of light that could unblock Turkey's troubled path to Europe. The Direct Trade Regulation, proposed back in 2004 by the European Commission to lift the isolation of northern Cyprus, may be resurrected by the new decisionmaking procedures of the post- Lisbon EU. Were this to take place, much needed momentum may be injected in Turkey's ailing EU accession process.
Political Geography:
Europe, Turkey, Island, and Cyprus

33. Confronting Environmental Treaty Implementation Challenges in the Pacific Islands

Author:
Pamela S. Chasek
Publication Date:
01-2010
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
East-West Center
Abstract:
The Pacific is at the crossroads of all environmental and sustainable development issues. It is one of the richest areas of the world in terms of biodiversity, yet it is also one of the most fragile and vulnerable regions. Problems are so large that none of the Pacific Island states or territories can respond to them alone. As a result, regional cooperation, mutual aid between states, and the pooling of energies and ideas are necessary.
Topic:
Environment and Treaties and Agreements
Political Geography:
Asia, Australia/Pacific, and Island

34. North Korea: The Risks of War in the Yellow Sea

Publication Date:
12-2010
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
The Yellow Sea off the Korean peninsula has become a potential flashpoint for a wider conflict. An escalating series of confrontations by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has seen the sinking of a Republic of Korea (ROK) naval vessel and the shelling of civilian settlements on an island near the boundary. The disputed nature of this maritime boundary, known as the Northern Limit Line (NLL), as well as the volatility of DPRK politics has created a serious risk that any further provocation might turn into a wider conflict. While international attention is once again focused on the North's nuclear program, there is an urgent need to implement measures that could reduce the possibility of a clash in the Yellow Sea becoming something worse.
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, Conflict Prevention, Nuclear Weapons, War, and Weapons of Mass Destruction
Political Geography:
South Korea, North Korea, and Island

35. Ocean frontier expansion and the Kalayaan Islands Group claim: Philippines\' postwar pragmatism in the South China Sea

Author:
Ulises Granados
Publication Date:
05-2009
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
International Relations of the Asia-Pacific
Institution:
Japan Association of International Relations
Abstract:
In 1946, the Philippines raised claims in the South China Sea over an area already known as Spratly Islands. This claim advanced through peculiar stages, starting when Thomas Cloma allegedly discovered islands in 1946, later named as Freedomland, and maturing to some extent in 1978 by the government\'s claim over the so-called Kalayaan Island Group. Considered as an oceanic expansion of its frontiers, this paper reviews the basis of the claim, first over the nature of Cloma\'s activities, and secondly over the measures the Philippine government took as a reaction of Cloma\'s claim of discovery of an area already known in western cartography as the Spratlys. Eventually, what is the nature of the link between the 1978 Kalayaan Islands Group\'s official claim and 1956 Cloma\'s private one?
Topic:
International Relations
Political Geography:
China, Philippines, and Island

36. ROK Military Transformation and ROK-US Security and Maritime Cooperation: MD, PSI and Dokdo Island

Author:
Taewoo Kim
Publication Date:
01-2009
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
International Journal of Korean Studies
Institution:
International Council on Korean Studies
Abstract:
In the last decade the ROK-U.S. alliance has soured as the two ideologically slanted predecessor administrations of Kim Dae Jung and Roh Moo Hyun brandished 'idealist policy experiments' over issues critical to the alliance. Under the banner of 'autonomy,' the Roh administration initiated the 2007 decision to separate operational control (OPCON) and dismantle the Combined Forces Command (CFC) by 2012. The Defense Reform 2020 was a decisive masterpiece to placate the conservative realists critical to the Roh's leftist experiments. The task of redressing the vestige of distortions belongs to the newly elected Lee Myung Bak, who already began restoration of the bilateral relations since the two summits in 2008, which promised to forge a 'strategic alliance.' If the 2007 agreement over OPCON and CFC is irreversible, the Lee administration has no other choice but to formulate a new security cooperation while utilizing the Defense Reform as the highway leading to military transformation and upgraded ROK-U.S. cooperation in that regard. The rationale is that the U.S. will remain a critical partner even after the transfer of OPCON in all defense areas such as collaboration upon a Korean contingency, purchase of new weapon systems, and interoperability. There are other critical issues that need mutual adjustment and understanding. For South Korea, more active participation in the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) is worth a try. The U.S. needs to understand South Korea's hesitation to fully participate in the U.S.-initiated TMD. Technically, the proximity to North Korea's high speed ballistic missiles may nullify the South's missile defense efforts. Politically, such participation will irritate China and Russia. Particularly, U.S. recognition of Japan's claim over Dokdo (Takesima) island, if any, will pour cold water on ROK-U.S.-Japan trilateral maritime cooperation, and dishearten 'ordinary South Koreans' who pin high expectations on the 'strategic alliance.'
Topic:
Security
Political Geography:
Russia, Japan, China, South Korea, and Island

37. No Other Life: Gangs, Guns, and Governance in Trinidad and Tobago

Author:
Dorn Townsend
Publication Date:
12-2009
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Small Arms Survey
Abstract:
In the last decade, gun-related homicides in Trinidad and Tobago (T T) have risen about1,000 per cent. While higher rates of crime have permeated much of the island of Trinidad in particular, overwhelmingly violence is concentrated in relatively small, hilly, and dense urban areas on the east side of Port of Spain's central business district. On a per capita basis, the eastern districts of Port of Spain are among the most dangerous places on the planet and, as a whole, the murder rate for Port of Spain is comparable to that of Baghdad (Kukis, 2009).
Topic:
Arms Control and Proliferation, Crime, and Poverty
Political Geography:
Africa, Spain, and Island

39. Currency Boards vs. Dollarization: Lessons from the Cook Islands

Author:
Richard C. K. Burdekin
Publication Date:
01-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The Cato Journal
Institution:
The Cato Institute
Abstract:
Modern currency boards are not necessarily precluded from financing government spending and may feature only partial foreign reserve backing. The potential dangers are highlighted by the Cook Islands case, where accelerating rates of currency issuance, combined with rising government budget deficits, led to a crisis of confidence in 1994. It is unlikely that the seigniorage gained from the short-lived currency board experiment outweighed the costs associated with the swings in policy. In the end, delayed fiscal retrenchment was accompanied by an abrupt contraction in the money supply as the local currency was withdrawn in 1995 and full dollarization re-established.
Political Geography:
Island

40. Brazil: Bright Prospects or Dark Portents?

Author:
Matthew M. Taylor
Publication Date:
01-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The Journal of Diplomacy and International Relations
Institution:
School of Diplomacy and International Relations, Seton Hall University
Abstract:
Brazil is an island on its continent, separated from its neighbors by an ocean of history, culture, and language. And yet whither Brazil, so too Latin America. The country accounts for a sixth of the region's trade, and more than a third of its GDP and its population. In addition to its large share in all cross-regional quantitative measures, Brazil's weight is geopolitical as well, with the country playing a central role among leading emerging markets. The state of affairs in Brazil, then, is of enormous concern to its neighbors, and should be of great concern to the rest of the world as well.
Topic:
Markets
Political Geography:
Brazil, Latin America, and Island