BERLIN— A United Nations court Wednesday laid down a new sea border betweenBangladeshandMyanmar, ruling on a complex dispute in a resource-rich area that has been a frequent flashpoint for the two nations.
In a two-hour ruling at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea in the northern German city of Hamburg, presiding judge Jose Luis Jesus set out a new maritime line widely seen as a compromise between the two rival cases.
He ruled that both countries should retain sovereignty over their respective continental shelves and, while ruling in favour ofMyanmar’s method of measuring the border, handed more sea area toBangladesh.
The 23 judges from all over the world arrived at the decision unanimously although some offered dissenting opinions on some parts of the judgement.
“Both sides won something and lost something,” said the German judge on the panel, Ruediger Wolfrum, according to local German agency DPA.
Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister Dipu Moni also acknowledged it was a “victory for both sides,” according to DPA, although she saidDhakacould now begin to exploit the area for gas and oil.
The row, dating back decades, brought the two countries close to military conflict in 2008 whenBangladeshaccusedMyanmarof exploring for gas in disputed waters.
Myanmarsent military vessels to support drilling for gas by South Korean company Daewoo some 50 kilometres (30 miles) south ofBangladesh’sSaint Martinisland.
Bangladeshresponded by sending four warships of their own. Troops massed on the border before the tensions calmed.
Myanmarhas discovered huge reserves of natural gas in the Bay of Bengal and has made clear it intended to explore further in an area also claimed byBangladesh.
Dhaka hopes to resolve a similar maritime border dispute withIndiain 2014.
Both sides have agreed to abide by the ruling and there is no possibility of appeal.
Source : AFP
