The South China Sea dispute: historical overview, discussion of problems of a political and legal nature with particular emphasis on elements of China’s foreign policy

The South China Sea is one of the key interests of Chinese foreign policy. The author of the provided article will analyse geopolitical factors, including estimation of the total value of the resources of the South China Sea, further providing the reader with information about international law regulations regarding the analysed matter, as well as presenting the current situation on the South China Sea. During the realisation of said plan, the author will try to prove the thesis that the South China Sea is of utmost importance to the Republic of China, the thesis that international law is unable to resolve disputes arising from said sea, as well as the thesis that Chinese presence is gradually increasing on the South China Sea. After proving all of the highlighted theses, the author will present the most probable political forecast, as well as opinions presented in literature regarding this matter.

The aim of this article is to examine two treaties which are often presented by scholars as potential models for a maritime regime in the South China Sea, namely the Svalbard Treaty and the Antarctic Treaty System. The work concludes that even though both of the treaties have resolved equally complex territorial disputes, their importance as a role model for the SCS is limited due to the unique political condition in the Asia-Pacific. However, the solutions within the sphere of environmental protection and the structure of decision-making institutions developed by the abovementioned treaties present a valuable lesson and a potential example for the countries involved in the South China Sea dispute to emulate. The article argues that cooperation within environmental protection and fisheries management, as a low-profile endeavour, is easier to be put into practice than the joint development of highly contested hydrocarbon resources of the SCS. Furthermore, it can potentially lay foundation for the future high profile collaboration. The paper also presents a model of a maritime regime for the South China Sea.