Avoiding tension in the Bay of Bengal
Sunday, 28 December 2008
The incidents of intrusion into Bangladesh territorial waters by neighbours like Myanmar and India have been on the rise since Bangladesh invited bids from the international oil companies to conduct exploration work in the hydrocarbon blocks within its territorial waters some months back. India and Myanmar also have acted similarly and struck substantial gas deposits in their offshore areas. Yet the two countries are laying claim on the areas in the Bay that belong to Bangladesh. There are overlapping claims by Bangladesh, Myanmar and India on some gas blocks in the Bay. But such disputes cannot be resolved without completing the necessary demarcation survey by the countries concerned. Bangladesh had also requested Myanmar to pull back its ships from the disputed area until a clear demarcation was made on the maritime boundary through mutual understanding as per UN guideline.
Only few weeks ago, Myanmar, Bangladesh's close neighbour intruded into its (Bangladesh's) territorial waters in the Bay of Bengal to conduct exploratory work for hydrocarbon deposits. Myanmar engaged a South Korean rig to do the work under the protection of its war ships. Following strong protest and a lot of persuasion, Myanmar finally withdrew its naval vessels and the rig. Now, the giant neighbour, India, has despatched its ships to areas within Bangladesh territorial waters to conduct survey relating to hydrocarbon exploration. As soon as a Bangladesh Navy ship patrolling the area spotted the Indian vessel, it called upon the Indian ships/ to leave the Bangladesh waters. The Indian ship, reportedly, initially showed the signs of obliging but it returned to its previous location. When the Bangladesh Navy told the Indian ship for the second time to leave, the latter did not agree to do that, claiming that it was operating within the Indian waters. The Bangladesh foreign ministry, according to a media report, was set to lodge a formal protest with India in this regard by last Saturday.
There is no denying that successive governments in Bangladesh has been quite indifferent to the need for expediting the process of demarcating its maritime boundary with a view to avoiding dispute with neighbours and starting its own exploration work in the offshore blocks as early as possible. The prospect of striking gas or oil in these blocks appears to be very bright following the discovery of substantial gas reserves by India (100 trillion cubic feet) and Myanmar (7.0 trillion cubic feet) in their respective offshore blocks in the Bay in 2005-06. Unofficial estimate puts the probable gas reserve in the offshore areas of the Bay at around 200 tcf.
None of the three countries -- Bangladesh, India and Myanmar -- has filed respective claims on particular areas of the Bay of Bengal to the UN under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The deadline for filing such claim in case of Myanmar is on May 21 and June 29 next year. Bangladesh also has to file its claim by July 27, 2011. But the existence of some overlapping of territorial boundaries among the three neighbours because of their curvy coastline makes submission of such claims essential to avoid conflict between the neighbours. The parties involved should avoid encroachment, particularly in areas considered to be 'disputed' until the issues are settled either through mutual discussion or under the mediation of the UN agency concerned. But India and Myanmar lodged protests when Bangladesh had invited bids from international oil companies to conduct oil and gas exploration in offshore blocks. But, interestingly, both India and Myanmar have been conducting exploration work in areas claimed by Bangladesh as its own. All concerned would hope that India would show respect to the territorial integrity of Bangladesh and restrain itself from doing anything that gives rise to unnecessary irritation in relations with one of its close neighbours.
Only few weeks ago, Myanmar, Bangladesh's close neighbour intruded into its (Bangladesh's) territorial waters in the Bay of Bengal to conduct exploratory work for hydrocarbon deposits. Myanmar engaged a South Korean rig to do the work under the protection of its war ships. Following strong protest and a lot of persuasion, Myanmar finally withdrew its naval vessels and the rig. Now, the giant neighbour, India, has despatched its ships to areas within Bangladesh territorial waters to conduct survey relating to hydrocarbon exploration. As soon as a Bangladesh Navy ship patrolling the area spotted the Indian vessel, it called upon the Indian ships/ to leave the Bangladesh waters. The Indian ship, reportedly, initially showed the signs of obliging but it returned to its previous location. When the Bangladesh Navy told the Indian ship for the second time to leave, the latter did not agree to do that, claiming that it was operating within the Indian waters. The Bangladesh foreign ministry, according to a media report, was set to lodge a formal protest with India in this regard by last Saturday.
There is no denying that successive governments in Bangladesh has been quite indifferent to the need for expediting the process of demarcating its maritime boundary with a view to avoiding dispute with neighbours and starting its own exploration work in the offshore blocks as early as possible. The prospect of striking gas or oil in these blocks appears to be very bright following the discovery of substantial gas reserves by India (100 trillion cubic feet) and Myanmar (7.0 trillion cubic feet) in their respective offshore blocks in the Bay in 2005-06. Unofficial estimate puts the probable gas reserve in the offshore areas of the Bay at around 200 tcf.
None of the three countries -- Bangladesh, India and Myanmar -- has filed respective claims on particular areas of the Bay of Bengal to the UN under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The deadline for filing such claim in case of Myanmar is on May 21 and June 29 next year. Bangladesh also has to file its claim by July 27, 2011. But the existence of some overlapping of territorial boundaries among the three neighbours because of their curvy coastline makes submission of such claims essential to avoid conflict between the neighbours. The parties involved should avoid encroachment, particularly in areas considered to be 'disputed' until the issues are settled either through mutual discussion or under the mediation of the UN agency concerned. But India and Myanmar lodged protests when Bangladesh had invited bids from international oil companies to conduct oil and gas exploration in offshore blocks. But, interestingly, both India and Myanmar have been conducting exploration work in areas claimed by Bangladesh as its own. All concerned would hope that India would show respect to the territorial integrity of Bangladesh and restrain itself from doing anything that gives rise to unnecessary irritation in relations with one of its close neighbours.