Maritime Territorialization, UNCLOS and the Timor Sea Dispute

In recent years, maritime sovereignty disputes have become highly visible microcosms of broader contests in the Asia-Pacific region. While material factors have provided potential flashpoints for conflict in the maritime domain, these conflicts are also motivated by ideational factors as sovereignty claims link national identity, status and prestige to the defence of maritime possessions. This article examines the way that maritime spaces have become increasingly linked to, and conflated with, state sovereignty in public discourses, a process articulated as "maritime territorialization". As a case study, this article uses the Timor Sea dispute between the small Southeast Asian state of Timor-Leste and its much larger neighbour Australia over maritime boundaries, territory and oil and gas reserves. It examines the specific maritime territorialization discourses employed by Timor-Leste's leaders and supporters, and considers some of the broader implications for maritime disputes in the Asia-Pacific region.