SEA DELIMITATION AND TERRITORY ISSUES OF QATAR AND BAHRAIN
Main Article Content
Abstract
Sea delimitation and territory issues have been a persistent challenge for sovereign nations across the globe. Qatar and Bahrain are situated in the Gulf region and have experienced territorial disputes over their maritime borders. The two Arab countries have been at loggerheads over the years regarding the ownership of some islands and their sea borders. The Gulf region is renowned for its rich oil and gas reserves, and the sea delimitation issues could potentially result in a significant economic impact. The disagreement between Qatar and Bahrain dates back to 1935, when Bahrain declared its claim to some islands that Qatar believed belonged to it. The disagreement progressed to a formal claim to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in 1991. In 2001, the ICJ issued a verdict that affirmed Bahrain's control of Hawar Islands, the case regarding the maritime demarcation remained unresolved. The maritime border dispute has complicated the two nations' efforts to exploit their oil and natural gas reserves. Another point of contention is the interference of Saudi Arabia during the negotiations to resolve the delimitation issue. The mediation attempts by the United States and the United Nations to resolve the dispute have failed to achieve a breakthrough. In conclusion, the sea delimitation and the territory issues between Qatar and Bahrain is a critical concern. A peaceful settlement of conflicts can unlock the vast economic potential of the Gulf region and improve regional stability. The dialogue between the two nations must be continuous and driven by a solution-oriented approach.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
References
Evans, M. (2002). Case concerning Maritime Delimitation and Territorial Questions between Qatar and Bahrain (Qatar v Bahrain). The International and Comparative Law Quarterly, 51(3), 709–718.
Agung, K. M. (n.d.-b). Peraturan & Perundang-Undangan Undang-Undang. Nomor 7 Tahun 2018,Tentang Pemberian Kompensasi,Dan Bantuan Kepada Saksi Dan Korban.
International Court of Justice. (1997). Maritime delimitation and territorial questions between Qatar and Bahrain (Qatar v. Bahrain). International Court of Justice. icj-cij. 443/case/87/judgments.
Kwiatkowska, B. (2002). The Qatar v. Bahrain maritime delimitation and territorial questions case. Ocean Development & International Law, 33(3-4), 227-262. https://doi.org/10.1080/00908320290054783.
Rahman, M. G. (2022). Hubungan Arab Saudi dan Qatar pada konflik di kawasan timur tengah tahun 2017. SIYAR Journal, 2(1), 50-74. https://doi.org/10.15642/siyar.2022.2.1.50-74.