GULF OF THAILAND: MARITIME JURISDICTIONAL DISPUTES AND ANTI-PIRACY ACTIVITIES

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP08C01297R000300190001-0
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 9
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: September 11, 2012
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: April 4, 1984
• Content Type: REPORT

Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0
Limited otticial Use
GEOGRAPHIC RESEARCH STUDY
No. 6 - April 4, 1984
(U) Gulf of Thailand:
Maritime Jurisdictional Disputes and
Anti-Piracy Activities
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of The Geographer
Bureau of Intelligence and Research
Limited Official Use
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0
LIMITED OFFICIAL USE
(U) GULF OF THAILAND: MARITIME JURISDICTIONAL DISPUTES AND
ANTI-PIRACY ACTIVITIES
Summary
Although Thailand under international law has the right to
apprehend pirates anywhere beyond the territorial seas of other
countries, the existence of overlapping maritime claims in the
Gulf of Thailand may complicate Thai anti-piracy activities. At
least one-seventh of the Thai Anti-Piracy Operational Zone (see
map', over) may overlap jurisdictional claims by Kampuchea and
Vietnam, encouraging a tendency toward cautious enforcement
efforts.in those "gray" areas. By agreement witn Malaysia,
however, Thailand has claimed criminal jurisdiction in part of
their joint development zone. Thailand thus could extend its
anti-piracy activities into an approximately 2,800-square-
kilometer area where there is a high incidence of pirate attacks.
LIMITED OFFICIAL USE
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0
Bangkok
THAI LAND
THAI LAND
GULF OF THAILAND:
Anti-Piracy Activities
and
Selected Maritime Claims
International boundary
(f) National capital
Thai Anti-Piracy Operational Zone
Malaysia-Thailand Joint Exploitation
Zone
Straight baselines
Additional area of Thai criminal
jurisdiction
Overlap with equidistant line
GULF
OF
THAILAND
KAMPUCHEA
Kampong
Sa m
Songkhla
5416 1-84 STATE(GE)
MALAYSIA
Names and boundary representation
are not necessarily authoritative.
Limited Official Use
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0
LIMITED OFFICIAL USE
Geography
The area of the Gulf of 'Thailand is greater than
190,000 square kilometers (sq. km.) or 57,000 square nautical
miles (sq. nm)--slightly larger than Kampuchea.1/ At its
mouth, traditionally measured from the southern tip of Vietnam to
the Malaysia-Thailand land boundary terminus, it is 210 nautical
miles wide. The gulf penetrates about 360 nm into the Asian
mainland, terminating in the Bight of Thailand, south of Bangkok.
Water depths in the gulf are relatively shallow, ranging from
about 4 fathoms (24 feet) in nearshore areas to about 45 fathoms
in the south-central section,
Thailand, Kampuchea, and Vietnam border the gulf proper.
Malaysia and Vietnam border its approaches.. The coast is
densely populated. Census figures for Thailand in 1970 show
6.7 million people residing in provinces bordering the gulf.
Offshore activities include fishing, gas extraction, and
shipping.
Maritime Jurisdictional Claims
The littoral states make different jurisdictional claims in
the Gulf of Thailand and its approaches. .With few agreed
maritime boundaries in the gulf, the exploitation of marine
resources and enforcement of relevant laws present difficult
problems to the coastal states and to third parties.
Straight Baselines and Internal Waters. Kampuchea,
Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam claim straight baselines2/
along at least part of their coasts. Because baselines delimit
the seaward extent of a country's claimed internal waters (an
area of complete sovereignty) and serve as tne base from which
other maritime claims are measured, the presence of straignt
1/ Kampuchea, as used herein, is the People's Republic of Kampuchea, a
regime installed by Vietnam and headed by Heng Samrin. The US does
not recognize any government in Kampuchea.
2/ According to international law, a state may create straight baselines
"where the coastline is deeply indented and cut into, or if there is
a fringe of islands along the coast in its immediate vicinity." Such
baselines "must not depart to any appreciable extent from the general
direction of the coast." The Kampuchean and Vietnamese straight baseline
systems do not follow these criteria in their entirety.
LIMITED OFFICIAL USE
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0
LIMITED OFFICIAL USE
2
baselines can significantly affect the extent of jurisdictional
claims. Thailand employs generally conservative straight
baselines along three sections of the coast; elsewhere the low-
water line serves as the Thai baseline. The Vietnamese- and
Kampuchean-claimed straight baselines (not recognized by the US)
are projected outward from the coastline to incorporate distant
islands. This expands maritime jurisdictional claims seaward, at
the possible expense of neighbors and third parties.
Territorial Seas. All the coastal states claim 12-nm terri-
torial seas, measured from their respective baselines. This is
an area of coastal state sovereignty, subject only to a right of
innocent passage by foreign flag vessels. Kampuchea and Vietnam
claim tne rignt to exclude at least foreign warships, however, a
position. not recognized by the US.
Contiguous Zone. Kampuchea and Vietnam claim contiguous
zones extending 24 nm from their baselines, i.e., a belt 12 nm
beyond their territorial seas. Their claims to jurisdiction
include a requirement that foreign warships obtain permission
before entering the contiguous zone, a position also not
recognized by the US. The contiguous zone is an area beyond the
territorial seas in wnich the coastal state may exercise certain
customs, immigration, sanitation, and fiscal authority, but
witnin which all states have freedoms of navigation and
overflight.
Exclusive Economic Zones and Continental Shelves. Kampu-
chea, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam claim 200-nm exclusive
economic zones (EEZs). (An EEZ is an area where the coastal
state has resource and related economic jurisdiction, but freedom
of navigation appertains.) No point in the Gulf of Thailand is
400 nm from the coast, therefore no coastal state can claim a
full 200-nm zone without impinging on its neighboring states'
EEZ claims. Although the EEZ declarations of the states in the
area include statements of intent to enter into consultations to
solve problems of overlapping claims, no agreements have been
reached to date.
Because of the depths and distances involved, the conti-
nental shelf claims of the littoral states probably coincide with
the geographic .extent of their EEZ claims. Malaysia and Thailand
have reached an agreement on part of their overlapping conti-
nental shelf boundary in the gulf. The remaining area of overlap
has been placed under a joint development regime by the two
states. The delimitation of the Malaysia/Thailand continental
shelf boundary is probably a good indication of the future EEZ
boundary between the two states.
No other bilateral EEZ or continental shelf boundaries in
the Gulf of Thailand or its approaches have been negotiated. The
LIMITED. OFFICIAL USE
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0
LIMITED OFFICIAL USE
- 3 -
overlap of Kampuchean and Vietnamese claims on the one side and
Thai and Malaysian claims on the other does not appear near
resolution.
Overlapping Claims. The degree of overlap among the claims
to extended maritime jurisdiction in the gulf and its approaches
is unclear because outer limits have not been precisely delimited
in most caseS.3/ Vietnam and the People's Republic of Kampu-
chea have not delimited the boundary between their claimed
internal waters or other maritime jurisdictions. Under a 1982
agreement, however, the boundary of their internal waters will
extend to a point on a straight baseline between the Tho Chu
Archipelago and Poulo Wai Island. Therefore, it is possible to
estimate a hypothetical median line with Thailand based on their
joint straight baseline systems. There is a significant area of
overlap between the continental shelf claim of Thailand and such
a possible equidistant line .(see map). EEZ claims may similarly
overlap.
Part of the continental shelf boundary between Malaysia and
Thailand has been delimited. Farther from shore, an area of
overlap (some 7,410 sq. km.) has been placed under a joint
exploitation agreement. The parties also agreed to a division of
the area for purposes of criminal jurisdiction (see map, p. ii).
In the approaches to the Gulf of Thailand, Malaysia and
Indonesia have agreed to a continental shelf boundary. The same
line eventually may serve as the EEZ boundary. Tnere are no
boundary agreements, either for the continental shelf or for the
EEZ, between either Malaysia or Indonesia and Vietnam. Indonesia
and Vietnam dispute an area of overlap north of the Natuna
Islands. Discussions between Indonesia and Vietnam about a
resolution of their continental shelf claims were begun in 1978;
no agreement has yet been reached. There also appears to be a
narrow band of overlap between the Malaysian continental shelf
claim and a possible claim by Vietnam based on an equidistant
line giving full effect to the straight baselines delimited in
1982.
3/ In a worst-case scenario, the maximum area of overlap is produced by a
median line calculated between the joint Vietnam-Kampuchea straight
baseline and Thailand's baseline. In any negotiated boundary delimita-
tion, however, straight baseline systems may not receive full weight
in the calculation of median lines. For example, Burma ignored its
published straight baseline system in its maritime boundary agreement
with Thailand, signed July 25, 1980.
LIMITED OFFICIAL USE
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0
- 4 -
Anti-Piracy Activities
The designated Thai Anti-Piracy Operational Zone in the Gulf
of Thailand is approximately 70,100 sq. km. (20,400 sq. nm).
Fifteen percent (10,300 sq. km.) of the zone lies within the Thai
territorial sea. The Thai Marine Police patrol this area under
the UN High Commissioner for Refugees-Royal Thai Government
agreement. The Royal Thai Navy patrols the remaining 59,800 sq.
km. of the zone.
Two areas of possible overlapping maritime claims have
direct relevance to Thai anti-piracy activities. A band along
the eastern edge of the Thai zone with an area of approximately
2,810 sq. km. (819 sq. nm) could be claimed by Kampuchea and
Vietnam if they invoked an equidistant line calculated from their
claimed straight baselines. Thus, one-seventh of the operational
zone could be subject to a jurisdictional dispute among the gulf
coastal states which could mute enforcement activities.
The second area is adjacent to the southeast limit of the
zone. A small segment (804 sq. km.) of the operational zone
extends into the Malaysia-Thailand Joint Exploitation Zone.
Under the 1971 agreement with Malaysia, Thailand claims criminal
jurisdiction within an additional 2,810 sq. km. (819 sq. nm) of
this zone. Incomplete statistics indicate that this area lies in
a region with a high incidence of pirate attacks--a higher
incidence than that found in parts of the operational zone.
Were the operational zone to be extended to this area,
anti-piracy activities might be more effective. .
Prepared by Daniel J. Dzurek
632-7380
Approved by J. Millard Burr
632-2021
LIMITED OFFICIAL USE
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0
APPENDIX
Jurisdictional Claims by Country or Territory in the
Gulf of Thailand and its Approaches
People's Republic of Kampuchea
Straight Baselines: Decree, August 31, 1982.
Territorial Sea: 12 nm, Decree, August 31, 1982.
Contiguous Zone: 24 nm from baseline, Decree, August 31, 1982.
"Foreign military vessels wishing to enter this contiguous zone must
request permission from the...Government" (commentary on the
decree, found in FBIS, Daily Report: Asia & Pacific, August 13,
1982).
Exclusive Economic Zone: 200 nm, Decree, August 31, 1982.
Continental Shelf: Claims natural prolongation to 200 nm, Decree.
August 31, 1982.
Bilateral Agreements: Under a July 7, 1982, agreement the PRK and
the Socialist Republic of Vietnam delimited a common seaward limit
of their "historic waters" and deferred the delimitation of the
boundary between their "historic waters" to a later date.
Comment: The Foreign Ministry of the Coalition Government of
Democratic Kampuchea has denounced the decree of August 31, 1982,
and the agreement of July 7, 1982.
Malaysia
Straight Baselines: Ordinance No. 7, August 2, 1969.
Territorial Sea: 12 nm, Ordinance No. 7, August 2, 1969.
Exclusive Economic Zone: 200 nm, Proclamation, April 25, 1980.
Continental Snelf: 200 meters in depth or limit of exploitability,
Continental Snelf Act (No. 57) of 1966, July 28, 1966. A map
depicting the limits of the claimed continental shelf was published
in December 1979.
Bilateral Agreements:
Territorial Sea Boundary: Malaysia-Thailand (in the Strait of Malacca
and in the Gulf of Thailand), October 24, 1979.
Continental Shelf Boundary: Malaysia-Thailand (in the Gulf of
Thailand), Memorandum of Understanding, October 24, 1979.
Malaysia and Thailand signed a 50-year joint development zone
agreement for an area near the mouth of the Gulf of Thailand on
February 21, 1971.
Multilateral Agreements: Malaysia-Indonesia-Thailand (continental
shelf tripoint), December 21, 1971; 1958 Geneva Convention of the
High Seas; 1958 Geneva Convention on the Territorial Sea and
Contiguous bone; 1958'Geneva.Convention-on the Continental Shelf;
signed the Convention on the Law Of-the Sea, Decouber 10, 1982.
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0
Thailand
Straight Baselines: Closure of the Bight of Thailand as historic
waters, Council of Ministers decree, September 22, 1959; and Act of
September 23, 1959; straight baselines, Announcement of the Office
of the Prime Minister, June 12, 1979.
Territorial Sea: 12 nm, Royal Proclamation, October 6, 1966.
Exclusive Economic Zone: 200 nm, Royal Proclamation, February 23,
1981.
Bilateral Agreements:
Territorial Sea Boundary: Thailand-Malaysia (in the Strait of Malacca
and Gulf of Thailand), October 24, 1979.
Continental Snelf Boundary: Thailand-Malaysia, December 21, 1971, and
October 24, 1979..
Multilateral Agreements: Thailand-Indonesia-Malaysia (continental
shelf tripoint), December 21,, 1971; 1958 Geneva Convention on the
High Seas (with a statement); 1958 Geneva Convention on the
Territorial Sea and Contiguous Zone (with a statement); 1958 Geneva
Convention on the Continental Shelf (with a statement); signed the
Convention on the Law of the Sea, December 10, 1982.
Comment: Thailand and Malaysia on February 21, 1971, signed a 50-year
agreement for a joint development zone in an area near the mouth of
the Gulf of Thailand.
Vietnam
Straight Baselines: Statement of May 12, 1977, and Declaration of
November 12, 1982. Vietnam claims historic waters in the Gulf of
Tonkin to a line defined by the Sino-French Treaty of 1887 but has
not delimited the connection of this line to the baselines declared
in 1982.
Territorial Sea: 12 nm, Statement, May 12, 1977, and decree, March 16,
1980.
Contiguous Zone: 24 nm, Statement, May 12, 1977. Foreign warships
must seek permission to enter the contiguous zone at least 30 days
in advance,
Exclusive Economic Zone: 200 nm, Statement, May 12, 1977.
Continental Shelf: TO the edge of the continental margin or 200 nm,
Statement, May 12, 1977.
Bilateral Agreements: Vietnam-People's Republic of Kampuchea agreement
on the historic waters of the two countries, July 7, 1982.
Multilateral Agreements: Signed the Convention on the Law of the Sea,
December 10, 1982.
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/09/11 : CIA-RDP08001297R000300190001-0