ABSTRACT
Any discussion on legal regimes for cooperation in the South China Sea must begin with a discussion of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982 (UNCLOS).1 I first explain the limitations of UNCLOS and international law in resolving the sovereignty and jurisdictional disputes in the South China Sea. I then examine the relevant provisions of UNCLOS on the claims and maritime boundary issues. I then analyze the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, which sets out the fundamental principles upon which cooperation can be based. I then summarize the lessons that can be learned from the Workshops on Managing Potential Conflicts in the South China Sea, and examine selected legal regimes from inside and outside the region to try to identify features that could be used as precedents in cooperative arrangements in the South China Sea. Finally, I make two proposals for cooperative arrangements to provide better order in the South China Sea.
