Both Bangladesh and India hailed the verdict announced by the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague on Monday. Foreign Minister Mahmood Ali hailing the decision on Tuesday said the ruling as a “victory and a win-win situation for both sides”. The court drew a new maritime border that awarded Bangladesh 19,467 square kilometres of sea area out of a total disputed area of 25,602 square kilometres.”It finally resolves peacefully and in accordance with international law a problem that had hampered the economic development of both states for more than three decades,” he said adding. “We commend India for its willingness to resolve this matter peacefully by legal means and for its acceptance of the tribunal’s judgment.” Bangladesh in 2012 resolved a sea border dispute with Myanmar.The maritime disputes stood in the way of Bangladesh’s plan to invite foreign companies to explore for hydrocarbons in the resource-rich Bay of Bengal after Myanmar and India objected to some of the sea blocks being offered. The hearing of the case before the tribunal in The Hague filed concluded on December 18 last year.Dhaka and New Delhi were locked in the maritime boundary disputes over 10 gas blocks in the Bay of Bengal as both the countries have been claiming the area to be their own.On October 8, 2009, Bangladesh instituted arbitral proceedings concerning the delimitation of the maritime boundary between Bangladesh and India pursuant to Article 287 and Annex VII, Article 1 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). India also agreed to submit to the arbitration tribunal’s jurisdiction.Bangladesh in 2010 decided to go for international arbitration in line with the provisions of United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) as the discussions with India and Myanmar did not yield the expected results.The Cabinet on July 9, 2001 ratified the UNCLOS and thus Bangladesh became full member of the Convention in July 2001.Bangladesh got a verdict against Myanmar on March 14, 2012 at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Seas (ITLOS) and through the verdict Dhaka sustained its claim to the 200 nautical-miles and exclusive economic and territorial waters in the Bay of Bengal.”The settlement of the maritime boundary will further enhance mutual understanding and goodwill between India and Bangladesh by bringing to closure a long-pending issue,” the Ministry of External Affairs of India said. India said the decision paved the way for further economic development between the two countries.”We believe that the settlement of the maritime boundary will further enhance mutual understanding and goodwill between India and Bangladesh by bringing to closure a long-pending issue,” said Foreign Ministry spokesman Syed Akbaruddin. After ratification of the UNCLOS in 2001, Bangladesh needed to submit scientific and technical data (seismic and bathymetric) to United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) within 10 years i.e. July 2011 for establishment of its extended continental shelf in the Bay of Bengal beyond 200 NM. Bangladesh conducted the first ever dedicated seismic survey of the Bay of Bengal in March, 2010.Having completed the crucial task of collection of geophysical and bathymetric data of the seabed, Bangladesh submitted its claim on the extended continental shelf to the UN with all supporting data on 25 February, 2011.This initiative also opened up new opportunities of protection, preservation and utilization of economic resources of the Bay of Bengal both within and beyond 200 NM.Bangladesh Navy and the Coast Guard too experienced problems in exercising sovereign rights in the maritime areas claimed by Bangladesh and in safeguarding our resources plundered by others in absence of maritime boundary. Both India and Myanmar were seeking resolution of the dispute on the basis of “equidistance” formula which would have narrowed down Bangladesh’s sea limit in the form of a triangle. Bangladesh, therefore, argued for settlement of the dispute on the basis of “equidistance formula” for an expanded boundary and ensure its stake on the continental shelf.The victory has taken place of the idea of peaceful settlement of disputes through give and take. We shall expect most sincerely that India and Bangladesh together find a way of settling the most burning issue of water sharing of international rivers. If both the countries agree to have the matter settled through international arbitration, it should be easier for both India and Bangladesh to accept the finding for effective cooperation in exploring sea resources.
