The Polar Silk Road and the future governance of the Northern Sea Route

This article examines China’s Polar Silk Road (PSR) and its legal implications for the future governance of the Northern Sea Route (NSR). It first discusses China’s economic and geopolitical interests in the so-called Polar Silk Road. The article then focuses on comparing Russian regulation of the N...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Leiden Journal of International Law
Main Authors: Liu, Nengye, Solski, Jan Jakub
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Cambridge University Press 2022
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10037/27491
https://doi.org/10.1017/S0922156522000516
Description
Summary:This article examines China’s Polar Silk Road (PSR) and its legal implications for the future governance of the Northern Sea Route (NSR). It first discusses China’s economic and geopolitical interests in the so-called Polar Silk Road. The article then focuses on comparing Russian regulation of the NSR and Chinese regulation of foreign vessels as a coastal state. Both China and Russia are contracting parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The comparison of domestic legislations aims to provide a detailed analysis on convergence and divergence of their implementation and enforcement of the UNCLOS on issues related to freedom of navigation, especially when it comes to foreign vessels, including military vessels, within national jurisdiction. The comparative study, therefore, helps determine to what extent China could vocally shape the development the NSR regulations in an era of climate change.