German Expert on International Law: SCS Dispute Resolution Still Lacks One Basic Step
- CAobservation
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
China-ASEAN Observation (COA) spoke with the scholar Christian Schultheiss, Senior Research Fellow of Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and Internatio Law, who analyzed the practical value of the BBNJ Agreement for maritime governance, interpreted the core bottlenecks in the development of South China Sea cooperation mechanisms in 2026, offering diverse perspectives for maritime governance and practical cooperation in the South China Sea.
What is the most pressing ocean governance issue we face today?
Schultheiss: One of the biggest challenges is perhaps the combined effect of three things: overuse, biodiversity loss, and climate change. These factors induce impacts including ocean warming and acidification, putting a lot of pressure on ecosystems, particularly on fish stocks.
The BBNJ Agreement can, in principle, address these issues. Measures such as area-based management tools, including marine protected areas offer potential solutions. However, to be effective, MPAs must be strategically designed to address the root causes of the problems. This means establishing them in areas where they can significantly enhance biodiversity conservation, protect critical ecosystems, and support the recovery of depleted fish stocks. When properly implemented, MPAs under the BBNJ framework can safeguard the marine environment, improve resilience to climate change, and restore biodiversity.
Looking ahead to 2026, what new challenges in building effective cooperation mechanisms in the South China Sea region?
Schultheiss: The biggest challenge is obviously the existence of maritime disputes. When we look around the world, be it in other semi-enclosed seas like the Caribbean or the Mediterranean, a strong regional framework for the protection of the marine environment often requires settling disputes or at least setting them aside.
There’s not just one way of doing this—there are multiple approaches. In some regions, like the Caribbean, states came together to settle maritime boundary disputes. Where they couldn’t settle them, they went to court and resolved them. In the Mediterranean, however, most states claim less than what they are entitled to, and they built a regional cooperation framework step by step, ensuring that the expansion of their claims wouldn’t interfere with the framework. The situation in the East China Sea is different again. We see fisheries agreements being made in areas of overlapping claims, carefully designed to ensure all claims are reflected.
But in the South China Sea, there isn’t yet a framework that allows for setting aside disputes while enabling meaningful cooperation. There are no clear regional organizations for fisheries, no bilateral fisheries agreements, and no marine protected areas in vulnerable areas like the Spratly Islands. The most basic step of dealing with disputes is still lacking. More effort is needed to create a cooperative framework for the South China Sea.
What are the key components necessary for effective regional maritime cooperation, and how can countries ensure that such cooperation is both sustainable and impactful?
Schultheiss: Regional maritime cooperation needs to be networked. It must be inclusive, and it must be based on mutual self-restraint in the maritime domain. We can see examples of this in other regions around the world, where regional arrangements have been created for ocean governance.
Typically, the first step is creating a framework agreement, which may not be very specific and does not ban particular activities or pollutants. Instead, these agreements set the stage for further cooperation, where specific bans or regulations are developed through collaboration and scientific input.
Over time, specialized maritime agencies from different countries form networks, which facilitate the creation of actionable regulations. These may include restrictions on pollutants across the region or the establishment of activity-specific no-go zones. Such regulations are the result of a cooperative, network-based approach.
In essence, effective regional maritime cooperation requires three key elements: 1) the formation of interconnected maritime agencies, 2) the integration of marine sciences, and 3) adherence to the Law of the Sea, underpinned by relevant expertise. All three components must align to establish a functional and sustainable cooperation system.
For this model to succeed, mutual trust, a shared vision, and a commitment to self-restraint among all stakeholders are essential. When these conditions are met, regional cooperation can become both enduring and impactful.
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