Why China's solution to global ocean governance and peace works

Editor's note: Yan Yan, a special commentator on current affairs for CGTN, is the Director of Research Center for Oceans Law and Policy, National Institute for South China Sea Studies. The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

Oceans are a shared heritage of mankind.

From Hugo Grotius' Mare Liberum, which advocates that the sea was international territory and all nations were free to use it for seafaring trade, to John Selden's Mare Clausum, which argues that navigable body of water under the jurisdiction of a state is closed to others, the debates on how to utilize ocean resources and what principles should be adhered to in claiming maritime rights have never stopped.

At present, the world is witnessing a variety of traditional and non-traditional maritime security challenges. On the one hand, traditional maritime disputes over sovereignty and maritime boundary delimitation still remain key causes of conflicts and frictions between countries. The history of human use of the ocean is a history of control and competition over the ocean.

On the other hand, no country is immune from maritime security threats. Tackling non-traditional maritime security threats is in the interests of all parties. Against the backdrop of unilateralism and geopolitical competition, establishing a maritime community with a shared future is the solution for the common security of all stakeholders.

In April 2019, Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed building a maritime community with a shared future, offering Chinese wisdom and solutions to global ocean governance. "The ocean does not separate our blue planet into isolated continents; instead, it links the peoples of all countries to form a global community of shared future that remains bound together through thick and thin," Xi said.

As early as in 2002, China and the ASEAN countries signed the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC), proposing cooperation in marine environmental protection, marine scientific research, safety of navigation and communication at sea, search and rescue operation, and combating transnational crime.

In 2011, China established the China-ASEAN Maritime Cooperation Fund, providing financial support for maritime cooperation in the South China Sea. At the 19th China-ASEAN summit held in Vientiane, Laos in 2016, leaders from China and ASEAN countries approved the Guidelines for Hotline Communications among Senior Officials of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of China and ASEAN Member States in Response to Maritime Emergencies.

China has shouldered its due responsibility as a major power with concrete actions in maintaining maritime security, combating maritime terrorism and piracy, protecting maritime channels, and maintaining the global maritime order. For example, China has actively participated in UN peacekeeping operations in the Gulf of Aden and waters off Somalia, ensuring a safe maritime navigation environment, maintaining maritime order, and providing public products for the international community.

In October 2018, the ASEAN-China Maritime Exercise-2018 was conducted in the northern part of the South China Sea, featuring eight ships, five observers and more than 1,200 personnel from China and all ASEAN countries. Half a year later, in April 2019, the Joint Maritime Drill 2019 was held on the sea off Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province. The drill witnessed participation from China and seven other nations, including Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam, Brunei and Myanmar with 13 ships and four helicopters.

These exercise drills have not only burgeoned the maritime security cooperation between China and ASEAN countries but also served as valuable exploration for establishing a new regional security framework.

In recent years, China has forged partnerships with marine authorities and scientific research institutes in Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia respectively to enhance marine ecological protection, and disaster mitigation and prevention. The collaborations include, but not limited to, the conservation and management of coral reefs, mangrove forests, as well as seagrass beds. In 2017, China and the ASEAN countries adopted the Declaration for a Decade of Coastal and Marine Environmental Protection in the South China Sea (2017-2027).

In addition, China has been a key advocate for establishing regional order in the South China Sea. Such commitment has created a conducive environment for the resolution of the South China Sea issue and offered institutional guarantees for managing conflicts and crises while facilitating practical maritime cooperation in the region.

Following the signing of the DOC, China and ASEAN countries agreed on the Guidelines for the Implementation of the DOC in 2011. In 2013, consultations on the Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea commenced. In 2018, China and ASEAN countries arrived at a single draft negotiating text of the COC in the South China Sea, and in 2019, the first reading of the single draft negotiating text for the COC was completed ahead of schedule. At present, both parties are undertaking the third reading of the Code, making positive progress.

Over the years, China has made significant strides in marine ecological protection, resource development, dispute resolution and crisis management, gaining valuable experience along the way. Guided by the concept of a maritime community with a shared future, China is confident in its ability to play an increasingly pivotal role in international maritime affairs and global ocean governance, aiming for the peaceful and sustainable development of the world's oceans.

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