South China Sea Dispute: Before Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the Philippines, India has made its position clear on the South China Sea dispute. The Ministry of External Affairs has said that the maritime rules made between China and ASEAN countries should be in accordance with the international law UNCLOS.
New Delhi: There has been a dispute going on between China and its neighboring countries for years regarding the South China Sea. Now before Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Philippines, India has also expressed its views on this issue. India says that any agreement related to the movement of ships in the sea and the rights of other countries should be within the ambit of international law. The Foreign Ministry gave this statement on Thursday when talks are going on between China and ASEAN countries on preparing a maritime code of conduct. India did not give any warning in the name of China, but said it is necessary to follow maritime rules.
What did India say regarding South China Sea?
In the press briefing held to give information related to Prime Minister Modi's foreign trip, Rudrendra Tandon was asked a question on the South China Sea dispute. During this, he told that this marine area is very important for the world's trade. A large number of cargo ships pass through here. Therefore, any agreement made in this area must follow international laws.
Tandon specifically mentioned UNCLOS. He said that the code of conduct being prepared between China and ASEAN should also protect the rights of those countries which are not directly involved in this negotiation. In fact, China and ASEAN countries have been trying for many years to make rules to prevent conflict in the South China Sea. But consensus has not been reached on all the issues yet. India wants that any new agreement should not go against maritime traffic and legal rights of other countries.
What is UNCLOS and how do its rules apply at sea?
The full name of UNCLOS is United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. It is called United Nations Maritime Law Conference in Hindi. This agreement was adopted on 10 December 1982 and came into force on 16 November 1994. If understood in simple language, this law tells how much right each country will have in the sea. The rules related to how far from its coast a country can use marine resources and where ships of other countries can pass are set in UNCLOS.
According to this, the coastal country can maintain its territorial sea up to 12 nautical miles from its designated baseline. At the same time, there is a contiguous zone up to 24 nautical miles, where special rights are available in certain matters like customs and immigration.
Apart from this, there can be a maximum of 200 nautical miles of Exclusive Economic Zone i.e. EEZ. Here the concerned country gets rights to explore and use resources like fishing, oil and gas. But this does not mean that the country has complete control over that entire maritime area. Other countries also have the freedom to operate ships as per international rules.
Why is there a dispute between China and Philippines regarding South China Sea?
There has been a long standing dispute between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea. The biggest reason for this is the control over those areas of the sea, where there is a possibility of oil and gas reserves along with fish. China says that it has historical rights over a large part of this maritime area. To show its claim, China has drawn a nine-dash line on the map.
But neighboring countries do not agree with this claim of China. The Philippines says that some of the maritime areas that China claims as its own fall in its exclusive economic zone. The claims of Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei also conflict with China. Taiwan is also involved in this dispute. This is the reason why there are often reports of tension regarding this maritime area.
Why will this controversy be discussed during Modi's visit to Philippines?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Manila, the capital of the Philippines from 16 to 17 November 2026. During this time he will participate in the 23rd ASEAN-India Summit and the 21st East Asia Summit. Both the meetings are to be held on November 17. The Philippines is chairing ASEAN this year. In such a situation, discussion on issues related to maritime security, trade and regional cooperation is going to be important.
The South China Sea has special importance for India also. India has no territorial claims on this sea, but its merchant ships use this route. India's trade and defense relations with the countries of South-East Asia are also continuously strengthening.