**UNCLASSIFIED**

**STATE 162460**

Subject: PROTEST OF THAILAND EXCESSIVE MARITIME CLAIMS

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\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\--7DB2BA 241857Z /38

R 241852Z AUG 00

FM SECSTATE WASHDC

TO AMEMBASSY BANGKOK

INFO AMEMBASSY BERLIN

AMEMBASSY LONDON

AMEMBASSY MOSCOW

AMEMBASSY PARIS

AMEMBASSY TOKYO

JOINT STAFF WASHDC 0000

SECDEF WASHDC 0000

CNO WASHDC

USCINCPAC HONOLULU HI

NAVAL WAR COLLEGE NEWPORT RI

UNCLAS STATE 162460

E.O. 12958: N/A

TAGS: PBTS, PHSA, FAIR, MARR, TH

SUBJECT: PROTEST OF THAILAND EXCESSIVE MARITIME CLAIMS

REF: STATE 11597

1\. THIS IS AN ACTION REQUEST. POST IS REQUESTED TO DELIVER

THE DIPLOMATIC NOTE SET FORTH IN PARAGRAPH 5 TO THE

APPROPRIATE LEVEL OF THE GOVERNMENT OF THAILAND (GOT).

FOLLOWING DELIVERY OF THE NOTE, POST IS REQUESTED TO REPORT

THE DATE OF THE NOTE, DATE OF DELIVERY AND THE REACTION OF

THE GOT, IF ANY.

**UNCLASSIFIED 1**

UNCLASSIFIED

2\. SUMMARY: THE DEPARTMENT HAS COMPLETED AN ANALYSIS OF THAILAND\'S
CLAIMS TO STRAIGHT BASELINE SYSTEMS ALONG ITS COAST WHICH WERE MADE IN
THREE ANNOUNCEMENTS BY THAILAND\'S OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER IN 1970
AND 1992. THE GOT MEASURES THE LIMITS OF ITS TERRITORIAL SEA AND OTHER
MARITIME ZONES FROM THESE STRAIGHT BASELINES. THE UNITED STATES VIEWS A
NUMBER OF THE GOT\'S CLAIMS AS NOT IN CONFORMITY WITH INTERNATIONAL LAW
REGARDING BASELINES, AS REFLECTED IN THE 1958 CONVENTION ON THE
TERRITORIAL SEA AND CONTIGUOUS ZONE, AND THE 1982 UNITED NATIONS
CONVENTION ON THE LAW OF THE SEA (UNCLOS). IN PARTICULAR, STRAIGHT
BASELINES MAY ONLY BE EMPLOYED IN LOCALITIES WHERE THE COASTLINE IS
DEEPLY INDENTED AND CUT INTO, OR IF THERE IS A FRINGE OF ISLANDS ALONG
THE COAST IN ITS IMMEDIATE VICINITY. BASELINES ESTABLISHED BY A COASTAL
STATE MUST NOT DEPART TO ANY APPRECIABLE EXTENT FROM THE GENERAL
DIRECTION OF THE COAST. IN SEVERAL AREAS, THE GOT CLAIMS DO NOT MEET
THESE ESTABLISHED GEOGRAPHICAL CONDITIONS THAT MUST BE MET TO PERMIT THE
USE OF STRAIGHT BASELINES RATHER THAN THE LOW-WATER LINE ALONG THE COAST
TO DELIMIT THE VARIOUS MARITIME ZONES. THE UNITED STATES IS NOT SINGLING
OUT THAILAND FOR CRITICISM. OUR OBJECTIONS ARE PART OF OUR WORLDWIDE
EFFORT TO PRESERVE THE INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZED RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS OF
THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY IN NAVIGATION END SUMMARY.

3\. BEGIN BACKGROUND (POST MAY WISH TO DRAW ON THESE POINTS, THE TALKING
POINTS IN PARAGRAPH 4, AND THE SUBSTANCE OF THE NOTE IN PARAGRAPH 5 IF
THE GOT IS WILLING TO ENGAGE IN ANY DIALOGUE ON THIS ISSUE) :

THE GOT\'S CLAIMS TO STRAIGHT BASELINES WERE MADE IN THREE ANNOUNCEMENTS
BY THE OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER IN 1970 AND 1992. THE JUNE 12, 1970
ANNOUNCEMENT ESTABLISHES STRAIGHT BASELINE SYSTEMS ALONG THREE AREAS OF
THAILAND\'S COASTS; TWO IN THE GULF OF THAILAND AND ONE AT THE NORTHERN
ENTRANCE TO THE STRAIT OF MALACCA. THE ANNOUNCEMENT OF AUGUST 11, 1992
AMENDED CERTAIN GEOGRAPHICAL COORDINATES AND NAMES IN THE 1970 CLAIM.
THE ANNOUNCEMENT OF AUGUST 17, 1992 CREATED A FOURTH STRAIGHT BASELINE
CLAIM IN THE GULF OF THAILAND.

THE UNITED STATES CONCERN WITH THE GOT BASELINE CLAIMS EXIST ON TWO
LEVELS THE GOT EXCESSIVE STRAIGHT BASELINES RESULT IN WATERS BEING
CLAIMED AS INTERNAL WATERS THAT SHOULD REMAIN AS TERRITORIAL SEA OR HIGH
SEAS AND IN BROADER EXTENSION OF THAILAND\'S MARITIME LIMITS. BOTH
SITUATIONS INFRINGE ON THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY\'S NAVIGATION RIGHTS
IN SPECIFIC AREAS OF THE SEAS OFF THE COAST OF THAILAND. SECOND, AND
PERHAPS MORE IMPORTANTLY, THE GOT CLAIMS, IF LEFT UNPROTESTED, COULD
INFLUENCE THE DEVELOPMENT OF INTERNATIONAL PRACTICE GENERALLY AND RUN
COUNTER TO EXISTING PRINCIPLES OF INTERNATIONAL LAW. SUCH ASSERTIONS OF
SOVEREIGNTY THAT EXCEED WHAT INTERNATIONAL LAW ALLOWS MUST BE CONFRONTED
OR OUR RIGHTS WILL DIMINISH AS . WE MAY BE SEEN TO ACQUIESCE IN SUCH
CLAIMS. FOR THESE REASONS THE UNITED STATES HAS PROTESTED EXCESSIVE
CLAIMS BY BURMA (REFTEL), VIETNAM AND MANY OTHER COUNTRIES.

END BACKGROUND

4\. BEGIN TALKING POINTS

**UNCLASSIFIED**

\- I HAVE BEEN ASKED TO CONVEY TO YOU THE CONCERNS OF MY GOVERNMENT
REGARDING THE STRAIGHT BASELINES OFF THE COAST OF THAILAND ANNOUNCED BY
THE OFFICE OF THE GOVERNMENT OF THAILAND\'S PRIME MINISTER ON JUNE 12,
1970, AUGUST 11, 1992 AND AUGUST 17, 1992.

\- AS IS SET FORTH IN THE NOTE I HAVE BEEN ASKED TO GIVE YOU, THE UNITED
STATES FIRMLY BELIEVES THAT THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A NUMBER OF THESE
BASELINES IS NOT IN

ACCORDANCE WITH INTERNATIONAL LAW, INCLUDING THE 1958 CONVENTION ON THE
TERRITORIAL SEA AND THE CONTIGUOUS ZONE AND THE 1982 UNITED NATIONS
CONVENTION ON THE LAW OF THE SEA.

\- BOTH THAILAND AND THE UNITED STATES ARE PARTY TO THE 1958
CONVENTIONADDITIONALLY, SINCE 1983, THE UNITED STATES HAS ACCEPTED THE
NON-SEABED PROVISIONS OF THE UNITED NATIONS CONVENTION ON THE LAW OF THE
SEA (UNCLOS) AS REFLECTING CUSTOMARY INTERNATIONAL LAW AND HAS ACTED
ACCORDINGLY.

\- I WISH TO ASSURE YOU THAT MY GOVERNMENT\'S OBJECTIONS TO THESE
STRAIGHT BASELINES SHOULD NOT BE VIEWED AS SINGLING OUT THAILAND FOR
CRITICISM OUR OBJECTIONS ARE PART OF OUR WORLDWIDE EFFORT TO PRESERVE
THE INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZED RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS OF THE INTERNATIONAL
COMMUNITY IN NAVIGATION, AND THEREBY MAINTAIN THE BALANCE OF INTERESTS
REFLECTED IN THE 1958 AND 1982 CONVENTIONS.

\- THIS IS ONLY ONE OF A NUMBER OF U S DEMARCHES MADE OVER THE YEARS
CONCERNING MARITIME CLAIMS MADE BY COASTAL STATES THAT ARE NOT
CONSISTENT WITH INTERNATIONAL LAW, AS REFLECTED IN THE 1982 CONVENTION.

\- AS THESE ARE MATTERS OF CONSIDERABLE IMPORTANCE TO BOTH OUR COUNTRIES
IN MAINTAINING THE BALANCE OF INTERESTS SET OUT IN THE 1958 AND 1982
CONVENTIONS, THE UNITED STATES WOULD WELCOME THE OPPORTUNITY TO DISCUSS
THESE MATTERS FURTHER BETWEEN EXPERTS FROM OUR TWO GOVERNMENTS, WITH A
VIEW TOWARDS SEEKING A COMMON UNDERSTANDING OF THE RULES OF
INTERNATIONAL LAW GOVERNING THESE ISSUES.

END TALKING POINTS

5\. BEGIN TEXT OF U S NOTE (COMPLIMENTARY OPENING) AND HAS THE HONOR TO
REFER THE GOVERNMENT OF THAILAND TO THE ANNOUNCEMENTS OF THE OFFICE OF
THE PRIME MINISTER OF JUNE 12, 1970, AUGUST 11, 1992 AND AUGUST 17, 1992
WHICH ESTABLISH STRAIGHT BASELINES IN FOUR AREAS OFF PORTIONS OF THE
COAST OF THAILAND IN THE GULF OF THAILAND AND NEAR THE STRAIT OF MALACCA
AND CLAIM THE WATERS LANDWARD OF THE BASELINES AS INTERNAL WATERS.

THE UNITED STATES WISHES TO RECALL THAT BOTH THE UNITED STATES AND
THAILAND ARE PARTY TO THE 1958 CONVENTION ON THE TERRITORIAL SEA AND THE
CONTIGUOUS ZONE.

THE UNITED STATES ADDITIONALLY WISHES TO RECALL THAT, WHILE THE UNITED
STATES IS NOT YET A PARTY TO THE 1982 UNITED

**UNCLASSIFIED 3**

**UNCLASSIFIED**

NATIONS CONVENTION ON THE LAW OF THE SEA, AS ANNOUNCED IN THE
PRESIDENT\'S UNITED STATES OCEANS POLICY STATEMENT OF MARCH 10, 1983,
THE UNITED STATES WILL EXERCISE AND ASSERT ITS NAVIGATION AND OVERFLIGHT
RIGHTS IN A MANNER THAT IS CONSISTENT WITH THE BALANCE OF INTERESTS
REFLECTED IN THE 1982 CONVENTION AND ACCEPTS THE NON-SEABED MINING
PROVISIONS OF THE CONVENTION AS DECLARATIVE OF CUSTOMARY INTERNATIONAL
LAW INCLUDING THE PRINCIPLES THAT UNDERLIE PROPER AND LEGAL
ESTABLISHMENT OF BASELINES.

THE UNITED STATES NOTES THAT THE RULES FOR DRAWING BASELINES ARE
CONTAINED IN ARTICLES 3 - 13 OF THE 1958 CONVENTION. ARTICLE 3 STATES
THAT \"EXCEPT WHERE OTHERWISE PROVIDED IN THIS CONVENTION, THE NORMAL
BASELINE FOR MEASURING THE BREADTH OF THE TERRITORIAL SEA IS THE
LOW-WATER LINE ALONG THE COAST \" PARAGRAPH ONE OF ARTICLE 4 STATES THAT
STRAIGHT BASELINES MAY BE DRAWN ONLY IN TWO SPECIFIC GEOGRAPHIC
SITUATIONS, THAT IS \"IN LOCALITIES WHERE THE COASTLINE IS DEEPLY
INDENTED AND COT INTO,\" OR \"IF THERE IS A FRINGE OF ISLANDS ALONG THE
COAST IN ITS IMMEDIATE VICINITY \" ARTICLES 1 -11 AND 13 - 14 OF THE
1982 CONVENTION REAFFIRM THESE RULES.

THE UNITED STATES WISHES TO RECALL THAT THE PURPOSE OF AUTHORIZING
STRAIGHT BASELINES IS TO ALLOW THE COASTAL STATE, AT ITS DISCRETION, TO
ENCLOSE THOSE WATERS, WHICH AS A RESULT OF THEIR CLOSE INTERRELATIONSHIP
WITH THE LAND, HAVE THE CHARACTER OF INTERNAL WATERS BY USING STRAIGHT
BASELINES, A STATE MAY ALSO ELIMINATE COMPLEX PATTERNS, INCLUDING
ENCLAVES, IN ITS TERRITORIAL SEA, THAT WOULD OTHERWISE RESULT. PROPERLY
DRAWN STRAIGHT BASELINES DO NOT RESULT IN EXTENDING THE LIMITS OF THE
TERRITORIAL SEA SIGNIFICANTLY SEAWARD FROM THOSE THAT WOULD RESULT FROM
THE USE OF NORMAL, LOW-WATER LINE BASELINES. MOREOVER, THE USE OF
STRAIGHT BASELINES IN A MANNER THAT PREJUDICES INTERNATIONAL NAVIGATION,
OVERFLIGHT, AND COMMUNICATIONS RUNS COUNTER TO THE BALANCE OF INTERESTS
REFLECTED IN THE 1958 AND 1982 CONVENTIONS.

WITH REGARD TO STRAIGHT BASELINES JUSTIFIED ON THE BASIS OF FRINGING
ISLANDS ALONG THE COAST IN THE IMMEDIATE VICINITY, THE UNITED STATES HAS
TAKEN THE POSITION THAT SUCH A FRINGE OF ISLANDS MUST MEET ALL OF THE
FOLLOWING REQUIREMENTS:

\- THE MOST LANDWARD POINT OF EACH ISLAND LIES NO MORE THAN 24 MILES
FORM THE MAINLAND COASTLINE;

\- EACH ISLAND TO WHICH A STRAIGHT BASELINE IS TO BE DRAWN IS NOT MORE
THAN 24 MILES APART FROM THE ISLAND FORM WHICH THE STRAIGHT BASELINE IS
DRAWN; AND

\- THE ISLANDS AS A WHOLE, MASK AT LEAST 50 PERCENT OF THE MAINLAND
COASTLINE IN ANY GIVEN LOCALITY.

ADDITIONALLY, THE UNITED STATES HAS TAKEN THE POSITION THAT, TO BE
CONSISTENT WITH THE 1958 CONVENTION\'S ARTICLE 4, PARAGRAPH 2 AND
ARTICLE 7(3) OF THE 1982 CONVENTION, STRAIGHT BASELINE SEGMENTS MUST:

\- NOT DEPART TO ANY APPRECIABLE EXTENT FROM THE GENERAL

**UNCLASSIFIED 4**

**UNCLASSIFIED**

DIRECTION OF THE COASTLINE, BY REFERENCE TO GENERAL DIRECTION LINES
WHICH IN EACH LOCALITY SHALL NOT EXCEED 60 MILES IN LENGTH;

\- NOT EXCEED 24 MILES IN LENGTH, AND

\- RESULT IN SEA AREAS SITUATED LANDWARD OF THE STRAIGHT BASELINE
SEGMENTS THAT ARE SUFFICIENTLY CLOSELY LINKED TO THE LAND DOMAIN TO BE
SUBJECT TO THE REGIME OF INTERNAL WATERS

THE UNITED STATES WISHES TO INFORM THE GOVERNMENT OF THAILAND THAT AFTER
ANALYZING THE FOUR AREAS OF STRAIGHT BASELINES ESTABLISHED BY THE
GOVERNMENT OF THAILAND\'S 1970 AND 1992 ANNOUNCEMENTS, THE UNITED STATES
HAS CONCLUDED THAT TWO OF THE AREAS DO NOT MEET THE INTERNATIONAL LEGAL
CRITERIA SET FORTH ABOVE:

THE UNITED STATES BELIEVES THAT THE STRAIGHT BASELINES CLAIMED IN AREA
1, WHICH IS SITUATED ALONG THAILAND\'S SOUTHEAST COAST IN THE NORTHEAST
PART OF THE GULF OF THAILAND NEAR THE CAMBODIA-THAILAND LAND BOUNDARY,
MEET THE INTERNATIONAL CRITERIA. THE STRAIGHT BASELINES ENCLOSE KO CHANG
AND KO KUT ISLANDS AND NUMEROUS SMALLER ISLANDS, AND THE WATER DEPTHS
LANDWARD OF THE ISLANDS ARE RELATIVELY SHALLOW. THE SEVEN STRAIGHT
BASELINE SEGMENTS RANGE IN LENGTHS FROM 3 2 TO 20 MILES. ONE BASELINE
DIVERTS FROM THE GENERAL DIRECTION OF THE COAST, BUT SERVES TO BRING THE
STRAIGHT BASELINE SYSTEM BACK TO THE COAST. NONE OF THE ISLANDS IS MORE
THAN 24 MILES FROM THE COAST AND THE ISLAND SYSTEM CAN BE CONSIDERED AS
FRINGING THE MAINLAND COAST. THUS, THE STRAIGHT BASELINES IN AREA 1 MEET
THE GEOGRAPHIC CRITERIA IN INTERNATIONAL LAW. SIMILARLY, THE UNITED
STATES BELIEVES THAT THE BASELINES IN AREA 3, WHICH IS A 125-MILE
STRETCH OF COASTLINE FACING THE NORTHERN ENTRANCE TO THE STRAIT OF
MALACCA ALSO MEET THE INTERNATIONAL CRITERIA.

AREA 2 IS IN THE WESTERN GULF OF THAILAND. IN THIS APPROXIMATELY
100-MILE STRETCH, THE COASTLINE IS RELATIVELY SMOOTH WITH SLIGHT
INDENTATIONS AND A SPRINKLE OF OFFSHORE ISLETS AND ROCKS. AT ITS
SOUTHERN EXTENT, THE COAST CREATES AN L SHAPE WITH SEVERAL MEDIUM SIZED
ISLANDS. ONLY IN THIS AREA MIGHT A FEW STRAIGHT BASELINE SEGMENTS HE
VALID. THE FIRST FIVE SEGMENTS IN AREA 2 ARE CONNECTED TO ROCKS AND
SMALL ISLETS AND NOT A FRINGE OF ISLANDS. SEGMENT 6-7 IS OVER 33 MILES
LONG AND CONNECTS A SMALL ISLET TO KO TAO, A SMALL ISLAND ABOUT 40 MILES
FROM THE MAINLAND. FROM KO TAO STRAIGHT BASELINES ARE DRAWN TO MIN BAO,
A SMALL ISLET ALSO ABOUT 40 MILES FROM THE COAST AND THEN TO KO PHANGAN
AND TO KO SAMUI. IN TOTAL, THE UNITED STATES BELIEVES THAT THE
GOVERNMENT OF THAILAND HAS CLAIMED ABOUT 3,000 SQUARE NAUTICAL MILES
(10,290 SQUARE KILOMETERS) IN AREA 2 AS INTERNAL WATERS THAT SHOULD,
UNDER INTERNATIONAL LAW HAVE THE LEGAL STATUS AS EITHER HIGH SEAS,
EXCLUSIVE ECONOMIC ZONE OR TERRITORIAL SEA.

AREA 4 IS A CONTINUATION OF AREA 2\'S BASELINES IN THE SOUTHWESTERN PART
OF THE GULF OF THAILAND. ALONG THIS 230-MILE STRETCH, THAILAND\'S
COASTLINE IS NOT DEEPLY INDENTED NOR ARE THERE A FRINGE OF ISLANDS IN
THE IMMEDIATE VICINITY. THE BASELINE SEGMENTS RANGE FROM 65 3 MILES TO
CLOSE TO 100 MILES AND ONLY A FEW SMALL ISLETS SITUATED BETWEEN 20 AND
30

**UNCLASSIFIED 5**

**UNCLASSIFIED**

MILES FROM THE COAST SERVE AS BASEPOINTS. IN TOTAL, IN AREA 4, THE
UNITED STATES BELIEVES THAT THE GOVERNMENT OF THAILAND HAS CLAIMED AS
INTERNAL WATERS AN AREA APPROXIMATELY 8,400 SQUARE NAUTICAL MILES
(28,812 SQUARE KILOMETERS) THAT SHOULD PROPERLY HAVE THE LEGAL STATUS OF
EITHER TERRITORIAL SEAS, EXCLUSIVE ECONOMIC ZONE OR HIGH SEAS.

IN SUM, IT IS THE VIEW OF THE UNITED STATES THAT THE VARIOUS STRAIGHT
BASELINE SEGMENTS NOTED ABOVE DRAWN BY THE GOVERNMENT OF THAILAND DO NOT
MEET THE CRITERIA CONTAINED IN THE 1958 AND 1982 CONVENTIONS AND,
THEREFORE, HAVE NO BASIS IN INTERNATIONAL LAW. IN THE VIEW OF THE
FOREGOING, THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES RESERVES ITS RIGHTS AND
THE RIGHTS OF ITS NATIONALS IN THIS REGARD.

(COMPLIMENTARY CLOSING)

END TEXT OF U S NOTE

ALBRIGHT

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