Law of the Sea and the Communist Countries : China and Maritime Jurisdiction with Special Reference to Boundary Issues

Abstract

On the limits of its maritime jurisdiction, the People's Republic of Chinal has been basically unspecific to date. The law of the sea itself, as it relates to the delimitation of maritime boundaries between adjacent and opposite stated, is not yet specific enough to be readily applicable in geographically complicated circumstances such as in the China seas. Thus far, China has been under no great economic pressure to move to the sea to develop resources more readily available onshore. Furthermore, the political relations between China and some of its neighbors have not been conductive to negotiation of sea boundaries. From its own standpoint, therefore, it has been practically unnecessary for China to pronounce its maritime jurisdiction in specific terms.