Topic: Territorial Dispute in the South China Sea
Country: Spain
Delegate Name: James Ross
School: Vicksburg High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All Spain position papers GLIMUN 2015 committees
Spain is no stranger to maritime territories. After all, the Canary Islands are under our jurisdiction. We believe this critical issue should be resolved peacefully under the guidelines set by the United Nations Charter of the Sea. The U.N Charter of the Sea clearly states that nations have a 200 mile zone, also known as an EEZ (Exclusive Economic Zone) from their coasts where they can harvest natural resources such as marine life, oil and natural gas. This region also has a plethora of resources. There are 11 billion barrels of oil and 190 trillion cubic feet of natural gas to be found in the South China Sea. No wonder roughly half a billion people live within two-hundred miles of this sea. It’s a literal ocean of opportunity. Clearly what happens here will affect those people. Furthermore, this region is also critical to world trade. 90% of Middle Eastern fossil fuel is expected to travel Asia via the South China Sea by 2035. Oil is obviously very important to global trade. If this region were to become a war zone, it not only would cause a war due to the issue, but more wars could follow due to wars over the increasingly rare oil. We hope to see a solution in which China and other nations take steps to de-militarize this region. Yet, all countries must do so willingly, as further acquisitions only serve to bring us closer to the brink of war. This issue clearly affects us all. China, Vietnam, the Philippines, and all powers need to demilitarize these areas and seek a peaceful solution to this critical conflict. Spain looks forward to working with it’s European Union allies and other countries in general to find a diplomatic way to end this essential issue.
