South China Sea Oil Dispute

International Business Law – BUL 6850

South China Sea Oil Dispute
Introduction
The South China Sea dispute is a territorial wrangle among certain Asian countries. The rivalry dates back to the Sino-Japanese War of 1894 (Roberts & Buszynski, 2015). The interest by these countries is the suspected oil potential of the region and fishing grounds. China claims the majority of the area covering hundreds of miles east and south of its southern province of Hainan. Other countries involved in the dispute include Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Brunei, all part of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) (See Appendix 1). The United States (U.S.) is an interested entity in the dispute based on the enormous number of commercial goods that pass through the sea each year (Dutton, 2014). This study will utilize the outcome of historical resolutions taken to resolve the dispute and analyze the conflict. Conducting a thorough analysis of this dispute is significant because it will set a good precedence for other existing global territorial disputes. In addition, finding a working solution for the dispute will benefit the ASEAN member countries through stability and other interested entities, such as the U.S., who rely on the South China Sea for trade. This paper will propose an International mediation alternative to the South China Sea oil dispute that will promote joint utilization of the natural resources within the territorial area.
The Role of the United States
The South China Sea is marked by several challenges affecting Asian countries; however, the U.S. is “deeply entwined in this complex web” (Schwartz, 2014). Commercial goods traveling through this sea, such as, electronics, crude oil, machinery and equipment, textiles, among others represent $5.3 trillion in total trade passing through the sea each