Ocean Governance in Times of Conflict: Current Challenges and Future Prospects

After the first Ocean Governance Incubator workshop on the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ), this second workshop shifts the focus to maritime spaces within national jurisdiction. It looks at political/military challenges in the territorial sea, exclusive economic zone and continental shelf. 

The ocean is at the frontlines of international order. If we understand order as a set of rules and practices that guide international conduct, then it is not hard to see how order is currently in rough weather – especially at sea. International laws and the directives of international institutions are being challenged across the world’s seas. In the ongoing war between Iran, the United States and Israel, illegal military actions of all sides hamper the freedom of navigation in the critical chokepoint of the Strait of Hormuz. The law of blockade has been abused from Venezuela to Gaza in order to intimidate and intercept humanitarian aid. Extrajudicial killings of alleged ‘drug terrorists’ in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific endanger the livelihoods of Latin American fishermen and coastal communities. Conflicts over control of the South China Sea continue unabated. Meanwhile, the North Sea and Baltic are the theatre of sabotage operations against seabed infrastructure and see Russia’s ‘shadow fleets’ sail by seeking to avoid sanctions. Even though there is much discussion about the future of the rules-based international order, all these issues at sea are rarely at the forefront or analysed together.

This workshop will investigate current conflicts as challenges to ocean order. It is the second event in the series of the UU Pathways to Sustainability Kickstarter Project ‘Ocean Governance in a Contested World Order: Weathering the Storm’. The first workshop explored biodiversity challenges in areas beyond national jurisdiction under the BBNJ Agreement. This second workshop shifts the focus to maritime spaces within national jurisdiction. It looks at political/military challenges that generally are more prevalent in the territorial sea, exclusive economic zone and continental shelf. The workshop singles out three case studies (warfare and navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, hybrid threats against seabed infrastructure, Russia’s shadow fleet), to answer these broader questions:

A panel discussion and scenario-building exercise will allow participants to draw connections between different challenges, reflect upon their shared impact and discuss which established or novel rules and practices can help us weather the international storm.