CHAPTER 2: ROLE OF UNITED NATION IN SETTLING INTERNATIONAL DISPUTE

Case Studies I: Icelands Fisheries Jurisdiction Case (United Kingdom v Iceland)

The Fisheries Jurisdiction Case of United Kingdom and Iceland can be regarded as
international environmental disputes which involved the Law of the Sea. In this case, United
Kingdom (UK) and West Germany had recognized Icelands new regulation to establish a 12mile exclusive fisheries zone and in return, Iceland must acknowledge UK and West Germanys
fishing rights.
After several years, Iceland had extended its exclusive fisheries zone from 12 to 50 miles
around its shore. UK filed an application before the ICJ for a rights-based approach. However,
Iceland claimed that the bilateral agreement was invalid due to changed circumstances.
It was held that Iceland had no right to exclude UK fishing vessels from areas between 12
mile and 50 mile limits and Iceland also had no right to impose restrictions on their activities in
this region. The court also ordered both parties to undertake negotiations in good faith to seek
equitable solution to their differences.1
Based on the case discussed earlier, it involved the international environmental disputes
that United Nations had effectively addressed through its rights-based dispute settlement concept
and specifically through ICJ. This indicates the role of United Nations as peace-keeping bodies
where United Nations had successfully implemented Article 33 of United Nations Charter by
utilizing all of their conflict resolution mechanism to resolve and prevent future disputes through
any three approaches, which is interest-based, rights-based and power-based. Furthermore,
United Nations plays role in cultivating of friendly relationships among states through
negotiations. This is a universally accepted method in settling a dispute as the outcome of the
negotiations is to deliver a mutually accepted settlement.

1 David M. Konisky. (1998). The United Nations Dispute Settlement System and International
Environmental Disputes. Retrieved August 23, 2015, from
http://www.monitor.upeace.org/innerpg.cfm?id_article=623.

Case Studies II: Spratly Islands

Spratly islands stated in South China Sea which consist over 750 islands and reefs which are
claimed by several countries such as China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Philippines, Brunei and also
Malaysia. This conflict arises because of overlapping sovereignty claims over the various islands
to possess the islands natural resources such as oil, natural gas and seafood.2
To summarize, there are two organizations involved in settling this disputes which is United
Nation and ASEAN. United Nation had passed the United Nations Convention on the Law of the
Sea. In 1982, it has been a document in which all the states to the disputes had defined their
Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Apart from that, United Nations had made sure that all the
claims go through the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS).3
Despite all the actions that had been taken, China still passes Territorial Sea and Contiguous
Zones Law claiming all islands and violates agreement in 1972 by drilling in the disputed
waters. In 2002, although China had signed an ASEAN agreement to end the dispute, but in
2015, satellite images had showed that China had built an airstrip on reclaimed land in the
Spratly Islands.
United Nations has the power to investigate any disputes that threatening international
peace, recommend any procedures in settling a dispute or call upon other member nations to
interrupt in economic relation as well as sea.
Based on the case mentioned above, United Nations does not have an absolute power and
their roles can be limited as China as a permanent seat of Security Council, can veto a resolution.
In my opinion, arbitration of the ICJ is one of the options to settle the Spratly Islands
conflict as all the parties to the dispute are the signatories of UNCLOS. ICJ is one of the organs

2 Trade and Environment Database. (1997). Spratly Islands Dispute. Retrieved

August 24, 2015, from http://www1.american.edu/ted/ice/spratly.htm
3 Dhruv Narayanan. (2015). Questions of peaceful settlement of the Spratly island dispute.
Retrieved August 24, 2015, from https://my-munofs-iv.wikispaces.com/file/view/Peaceful
settlement of the Spratly Islands_Scarborough Shoal dispute.pdf

of United Nations and the verdict of ICJ would be binding if all the parties agreed to submit the
dispute to the ICJ. Thus, the parties would be enforced to accept the decision by the ICJ.