Japan–Korea Joint Development Zone
Japan–Korea Joint Development Zone (JDZ) | |
---|---|
"7광구" or Block 7 in South Korea[a] | |
Location | |
Coordinates | 31°N 128°E / 31°N 128°E |
Part of | East China Sea |
Ocean/sea sources | Pacific Ocean |
Surface area | 24,092 nmi (44,618 km; 27,725 mi)[b] |
Max. depth | 1,000 fathoms (6,000 ft; 1,800 m)[2] |
Sections/sub-basins | 6[c] |
The Japan–Korea Joint Development Zone, often abbreviated as the JDZ, is an area in the
The zone is believed to hold an estimated
History
Ratification
Japan and South Korea both historically had overlapping claims over the
In a show of friendly
The agreement would be ratified by the South Korean
Post-ratification and controversies
Exploration activities would begin in the JDZ after the agreement was signed in 1979, and would continue steadily, though mainly unsuccessfully, in three joint exploration activities until 1992.[1] After this, fewer joint activities would begin to take place[3] until in 2005 when Japan refused to participate in a previously planned joint exploration in the JDZ.[1] Japan would engage in their last joint activity to date in 2010.[6] In line with this lack of activity, Japan during the 2009 to 2017 exploration period further disobeyed article four of the agreement by not appointing any concessionaires to any of the subzones.[5] This lack of recent research and joint cooperation since the 1990s has led to no significant oil and gas deposits being discovered in the zone, despite evidence of their existence.[5][12] Research done to date has only discovered five promising and thirteen potential areas for oil.[13]
Japan has expressed that their apparent lessening interest in the JDZ stems from estimates that significant oil and gas reserves in the JDZ are not enough to be commercially viable, also citing the previous failed drilling attempts.
Chinese claim
Benefitting from the dispute; China in recent years has also sought to extend a claim to the area.
A claim has become more plausible in recent decades though since Japan, despite mutual wariness between both parties, first held negotiations with China in October 2005 regarding joint oil and gas development in areas bordering the JDZ; including in the Chunxiao, Tianwaiten, and later Pinghu gas fields.[14] An agreement would successfully be signed on the matter at the 34th G8 summit in June and July 2008, excluding South Korea.[13][15]
In the event the agreement is terminated after 2028 but no clear decision on who will administer the area is yet made, China could legally start developing the area to legitimise a claim, as they have done with the aforementioned gas fields bordering the JDZ.[7]
In modern South Korean politics
The issue of maintaining control in whole or in part of the area the JDZ encompasses has surfaced itself as a growing issue within modern South Korean politics, especially as Chinese–Japanese cooperation increases in bordering areas.[13] Representatives of the National Assembly have debated multiple times about the JDZ, such as in 2011 and 2023,[1] calling for a diplomatic solution to avoid a potential future dispute over the region,[1][7] and to 'stop China' from expanding into the area.[7]
Despite South Korea's exclusion to these new bilateral agreements which could put their claims to JDZ area after the end of the agreement in risk, the nation has been "lukewarm" in asserting their position on the international stage.[13] In April 2008, President Lee Myung-bak announced he would discuss promoting future development of the JDZ in a visit to Japan, but no such discussion was made.[13] In May 2023, an attempt by the Democratic Party to make the JDZ an issue on the agenda for a Japan–Korea summit was also rejected.[1] Government officials in the nation have been accused on prioritizing establishing contracts with nations in Central Asia and Africa over the bordering JDZ for oil and natural resources.[13]
Resources
According to a Japanese survey done in the 1970s, the JDZ contains an estimated 6.3 billion barrels of oil.
Aside from the value of natural resources estimated to be in the JDZ, the development zone's geographic location runs through many
See also
- Similar disputed maritime territory
- Chunxiao gas field (Chinese gas field disputed by Japan bordering the JDZ)
- Liancourt Rocks (South Korean islands disputed by Japan and North Korea)
- Senkaku Islands (Japanese islands disputed by Taiwan and China)
Notes
- ^ Also translated as Sector 7, and is not to be confused with Subzone 7 of the JDZ when researching. The name relates to the seven blocks of maritime territory claimed by South Korea, in which Block 7 encompasses the entirety of the JDZ.[1]
- ^ a b Japan's increase in their territorial waters to 12 nmi (22 km; 14 mi) between 1974 and 1977 overlapped with the originally planned area of the JDZ in subzone seven by 8.5 nmi (15.7 km; 9.8 mi). This overlap was ceded from South Korea to Japan before the JDZ officially began in 1978, reducing the zone from its planned size of 24,101 nmi (44,635 km; 27,735 mi).[2]
- ^ a b Multiple maps displayed in a news report by The Chosun Ilbo in 2023 show the JDZ comprising only six more evenly sized subzones, and it is unclear when this rezoning took place.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Tae-wan, Kim (17 April 2023). "[쟁점] 한일 대륙붕 제7광구 운명은… 정치권 "대책 세워야"" [[Issue] The fate of Block 7 of the continental shelf between Korea and Japan… Politicians "need to come up with measures"] (in Korean). The Chosun Ilbo. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 27 May 2023.
- ^ a b c "No. 75: Continental Shelf Boundary and Joint Development Zone: Japan - Republic of Korea" (PDF). United States Department of State. 2 September 1977. Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 May 2023. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
- ^ from the original on 28 May 2023. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
- ^ a b c Valencia, Mark J. (June 1986). Taming Troubled Waters: Joint Development of Oil and Mineral Resources in Overlapping Claim Areas (Report). Vol. 23. University of San Diego. pp. 668, 671. Retrieved 29 May 2023.
- ^ from the original on 10 July 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Ju, Jaehyoung (24 February 2023). "Keep an Eye on the Japan-Korea Joint Development Zone". The Diplomat. Archived from the original on 28 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f g h In-joon, Choi (12 February 2023). "9000조 '7광구 油田' 독식 노리는 일본… 우리에겐 시간이 없다" [Japan aiming to monopolize the 9000 trillion 'sector 7 oil field'… we don't have time] (in Korean). The Chosun Ilbo. Archived from the original on 28 May 2023. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
- ^ Seoul, South Korea: United Nations. 30 January 1974. Archived(PDF) from the original on 6 June 2023. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
- ^ "Practice on Provisional Arrangements in Maritime Disputed Areas Joint Development Zones Korea and Japan Case". International institute for Law of the Sea Studies. Archived from the original on 30 May 2023. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
Although there were some restrictionsin [sic] the joint regulation zone as to the number and size of fishing vessels,types of fishing gear, time of fishing operations, there had not beenserious [sic] disputes in the zone because the maximum catch had been set atsuch [sic] a high level so as to satisfy the need for the Japanese fishermen
- ^ Roehrig, Terence (16 January 2021). "The Rough State of Japan–South Korea Relations". Maritime Awareness Project. National Bureau of Asian Research. Archived from the original on 31 May 2023. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
The two countries have also been able to manage fishing issues through a series of fisheries agreements.
- ^ Tokyo, Japan. p. 11. Archivedfrom the original on 30 May 2023. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- from the original on 26 March 2023. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f Dong-hyun, Lee (16 May 2008). "소외 당한 MB정부 자원외교" [Resource Diplomacy of the Underprivileged MB Government]. Naver News (in Korean). Busan Ilbo. Archived from the original on 30 May 2023. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
- Tokyo, Japan: The Korea Economic Daily. Archivedfrom the original on 30 May 2023. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
- ^ "Japan-China Joint Press Statement: Cooperation between Japan and China in the East China Sea" (PDF). Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Japan). 18 June 2008. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 April 2023. Retrieved 29 May 2023.
External links
- Official documents relating to the JDZ
- Agreement between Japan and the Republic of Korea concerning Joint Development of the Southern Part of the Continental Shelf adjacent to the Two Countries
- No. 75: Continental Shelf Boundary and Joint Development Zone: Japan - Republic of Korea
- Seabed Petroleum in Northeast Asia: Conflict or Cooperation?
- Further notable & unincorporated academic journals