KMI International Journal of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries
Korea Maritime Institute
Article

The Urgent Need for Maritime Partnership between Coastal States and User States

Suk-Joon Yoon*
*Navy Captain, Republic of Korea, retired, Senior research fellow and Director, international security program of the Korea Institute for Maritime Strategy, Seoul, Republic of Korea sjyoon6680@kims.or.kr

© Copyright 2021 Korea Maritime Institute. This is an Open-Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Published Online: Jun 30, 2016

ABSTRACT

Maritime security is an essential aspect of regional security, and for the Asia-Pacific region this depends on maritime partnership. So what are the best policy options to reconcile the coastal and user states, and how can they all be brought squarely within the remit of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)? The concept of Asia-Pacific Region Maritime Confidence Security Building Measures (APR-MCSBM) is the only productive approach available, with the primary aims being to preserve freedom of navigation, to ensure the free flow of commerce, and to uphold international law. First, despite the military posturing between coastal states and user states, there is no appetite for a serious military confrontation. Moreover, the regional nations, when not being intimidated by either of the great powers, make it clear that they are eager to discover a less volatile and more practical means of preserving stability in the disputed seas. And crucially, no country wants to see the extensive regional trade and economic relations damaged by chaotic and unpredictable crises in the East Asia Seas.

Keywords: United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS); Maritime Cooperation; Maritime Security; Coastal States; User States