Borders: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions) by Alexander C. Diener & Joshua Hagen

Author:Alexander C. Diener & Joshua Hagen
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 2012-08-05T16:00:00+00:00

6. Maritime claims in the South China Sea.

Another maritime controversy has developed in the Arctic region as the steady retreat of ice pack opens the region for exploration and commerce and transforms its strategic importance. In addition to providing shorter shipping routes between many locations in the Northern Hemisphere, an increasingly ice-free Arctic would undoubtedly become a major commercial fishery, and initial exploration indicates significant undersea oil and gas deposits. This issue gained international prominence in 2007 when a Russian expedition used a submersible to plant a Russian flag on the seabed at the North Pole to claim the area and its resources as an extension of its sovereign territory. Other states bordering the Arctic region soon launched expeditions to survey the seafloor and strengthen their naval capabilities in the region. Some have already filed official “continental shelf” claims based on the UNCLOS, but the issue of Arctic sovereignty remains unresolved.

The demarcation of airspace has also evolved with technological advances and raises profound questions concerning the viability of extending the ideals of territorial sovereignty skyward. Control over airspace generally corresponds with sovereignty over land and extends up to the Kármán Line, which marks the general upper limit of aerodynamic flight. Control of this space was irrelevant before the advent of air travel but became increasingly significant, both materially and symbolically, as national airlines became symbols of modernity and states vigorously protected their airspace rights. However, the deregulation of air travel and the promotion of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) since the 1960s have made states less assertive in protecting their national air-carriers and airspace. This supranational organization and crossborder coordination are vital, especially for airports in close proximity to borders. The ICAO, however, serves only as an arbitrator between states. States retain sovereignty over the air above their territories.

Airspace sovereignty therefore retains geopolitical significance. Governments have regularly used the enforcement and violation of airspace as a means of sending messages. Russian incursions into Lithuanian airspace, for example, signal Moscow’s unwavering resolve to maintain its Kaliningrad exclave. France’s refusal to allow American planes to cross its airspace en route to the 1986 bombing of Libya revealed to the world that Paris disapproved of the operation. Today, the geopolitical relevance of air-border security is enhanced by missile defense systems, radar monitoring, and satellite technology.

Euphemistically referred to as the final frontier, outer space gained clear geopolitical significance following the launch of the first satellite into orbit by the Soviet Union in 1957. This led to the Outer Space Treaty in 1967, which declared outer space, the moon, and other celestial objects to be “the province of all mankind” not subject to claims of state sovereignty. The treaty prohibits states from placing nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction anywhere in space. The construction of military bases or other military activities on the moon or other celestial bodies is also specifically forbidden. Notably, the treaty does not prohibit the deployment or use of conventional weapons in orbit around the Earth or moon, or just floating in space.

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