In case of unilateral declarations of restricted use of waters―when a nation conducts military exercises in international waters, issues a notice to mariners, or declares limits on freedom of navigation in archipelago waters and the Exclusive Economic Zone―free use of the seas also suffers.
In the worst case, a nation or power may intentionally create obstructions to fee access of a sea lane. The consequences of such acts are severe. The side that commits sea denial remains free to choose the means and course of its actions so as to maximize its own interests, carefully monitoring the unfolding events. This places sea lanes in a considerable amount of danger. Psychological pressure will also intensify the crisis, especially if the act of sea denial employs the stealth of submarines or threat of mines.
Sea denial committed near choke points and harbors can be a lethal blow to a system unable to formulate effective countermeasures.
Of the six SLOC obstructions listed above, the first three result from either natural disasters, accidents , or crime. These do not particularly mandate a military response. However, the challenges posed by the last three deeds remain impossible to resolve without the employment of a military response.
In post-Cold War Asia, especially since the UNCLOS came into effect in November 1994, interest in pursuing maritime cooperation has heightened. Efforts to provide frameworks for cooperation have thus far centered on the Maritime Cooperation Working Group, CSCAP. However, due to various domestic circumstances of participating nations, the players lack a consensus on the necessity of cooperation. As a result, the scope of planned cooperation remains limited to non-military aspects such as education and training, environmental protection, SAR, anti-piracy, safety of navigation, resource protection, and disaster assistance. Efforts have failed to even touch on cooperation for dealing with types of crises.
The development of an international cooperative scheme for SLOC security will aid the goal of deterring local conflicts and preserving regional stability. Such a scheme should have as its goal freedom and safety of navigation to ensure smooth economic access in the region. On the other hand, in order to encourage a widespread desire for a degree of cooperation among countries in the region, a cooperative international scheme is desirable.
Taking the above-mentioned factors into account, there is a need to establish a new regional scheme for international cooperation in order to ensure the security of SLOCs in the Asia-Pacific region.
The entity of the new scheme should be organized on a burden-sharing basis. The assumption of great responsibility for SLOC protection and direct contributions to SLOC maintenance can have long-term implications for regional stability and can therefore contribute to the national interests of participating countries of the region.
An international cooperative SLOC security system can be established by placing the United States at its core (key strategic player) and having the Asia-Pacific region countries share the responsibilities of areas and functions in accordance with their capabilities and geographic conditions.
