‘Sea Basing’ in South China Sea: Lessons for Littorals

Commodore Mustaque Ahmed, (G), NPP, psc, BN

‘Sea Basing’ in South China Sea: Lessons for Littorals

Commodore Mustaque Ahmed, (G), NPP, psc, BN
Bangladesh Navy
mus811bd2002@gmail.com

Keywords: Sea, artificial, islands, SCS, land, reclamation, at, sea, dispute, UNCLOS, basing,

Abstract

Littoral features of the South China Sea (SCS) viz the islands, reefs and shoals are now heavily contested for claiming mairitme rights and possession. The disputes, though longstanding, have gained new trigger due to overlapping claims and ambitions of the neighbouring littorals. ASEAN mediation and military muscle-flexing are moving parallelly in the region with no unified and agreeable consensus reached. The resources, lucrative energy, trade routes and above all international polarisation have made SCS a 'hotspot' in recent years. Its neighbours are now in an unprecedented race of island possession, building artificial islands and militarising it which this article refers as ‘Sea Basing’. Reclaiming lands to turn the reefs into Sea Basing is now the bone of contention in SCS.

The ongoing tension of South-East Asian archipelago also hints the future security challenges and complex regional dynamics. UNCLOS and emerging blue economy have made the small littorals sea-facing for economic emancipation. At the same time, littorals are now more concerned to safeguard own territorial rights while pursuing the national objectives through operational, constabulary and benign roles. The topic 'Sea Basing' covers the recent trends of island development, militarisation, also new structural innovations to monitor and respond to the crisis in SCS. The lessons of SCS dispute and approaches by the littorals thereby need to be examined holistically. The passage of this article also enables the author to cherish the memories of being trained in this archipelago, walking along the reefs as a young Navy officer and now having a near-sight of the escalating tension of SCS as a military diplomat.

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