Rules

Question 1

Q1: What are the high seas?

Answer 1

A1: International waters beyond any nation’s jurisdiction, covering more than 60% of the world’s oceans where all countries have freedom of navigation, fishing, overflight, and research.

Question 2

Q2: What established the legal framework for ocean governance?

Answer 2

A2: The 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Question 3

Q3: What is an EEZ and how far does it extend?

Answer 3

A3: An Exclusive Economic Zone extends 200 nautical miles from a coastal state’s shore, granting special rights to resources.

Question 4

Q4: What rights does a country have in its EEZ?

Answer 4

A4: It can explore, exploit, conserve, or manage natural resources and grant or deny access to foreign entities.

Question 5

Q5: How many landlocked countries lack EEZs?

Answer 5

A5: 44 countries.

Question 6

Q6: What principle allows ships to pass through EEZs and the high seas?

Answer 6

A6: The principle of freedom of navigation.

Question 7

Q7: What actors are involved in maritime disputes?

Answer 7

A7: States (navies, coast guards), private actors (shipping, oil, fishing companies), coastal communities, NGOs, and illegal actors (pirates, smugglers).

Question 8

Q8: What are the main causes of maritime disputes?

Answer 8

A8: Rising demand for resources, illegal fishing, offshore fossil fuel competition, maritime border disputes, and chokepoint control.

Question 9

Q9: How has the nature of fisheries conflict changed?

Answer 9

A9: Conflicts have shifted toward IU (Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated) fishing, have become more violent, and are more frequent in Asia and Africa.

Question 10

Q10: What major regions are affected by offshore fossil fuel disputes?

Answer 10

A10: The Mediterranean, Gulf of Guinea, Persian-Arabian Gulf, Arctic, and Baltic regions.

Question 11

Q11: How many maritime border disputes were reported in 2019?

Answer 11

A11: Between 70 and 80 disputes, ranging from low to high intensity.

Question 12

Q12: What is a maritime chokepoint?

Answer 12

A12: A narrow and strategic waterway crucial for global trade and vulnerable to disruption.

Question 13

Q13: Where do most piracy incidents occur?

Answer 13

A13: Near chokepoints, ports, and contested maritime boundaries, especially where state presence is weak.

Question 14

Q14: Which five countries account for over 60% of piracy attacks?

Answer 14

A14: Somalia, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Nigeria.

Question 15

Q15: How many piracy incidents were reported in 2023?

Answer 15

A15: 120 incidents, with increases near the Horn of Africa and the Strait of Malacca.

Question 16

Q16: Why are submarine cables geopolitically sensitive?

Answer 16

A16: They carry global internet data and are vulnerable to damage or sabotage.

Question 17

Q17: What revealed espionage on submarine cables?

Answer 17

A17: Edward Snowden’s 2013 revelations about US and UK surveillance.

Question 18

Q18: What are the most common causes of cable damage?

Answer 18

A18: Natural events (earthquakes, landslides), shark attacks, ship anchors, and fishing activity—not primarily geopolitical sabotage.

Question 19

Q19: Why are states increasing their military presence at sea?

Answer 19

A19: To claim territory, assert power, protect trade, respond to crises, and combat piracy, illegal fishing, or migration

Question 20

Q20: Despite tensions, how is cooperation maintained at sea?

Answer 20

A20: Through joint patrols, environmental agreements, commercial partnerships, and treaties between states, NGOs, and companies.

Question 21

Q21: What makes maritime cooperation essential?

Answer 21

A21: It enables the safe functioning of maritime trade and resource sharing in a highly globalised system.