Thailand should continue to uphold its neutrality over the territorial conflict in the South China Sea and tread carefully in forging diplomacy with countries embroiled in the dispute, a seminar was told.
The conclusion was drawn from the online seminar titled "Unlocking the issue of the South China Sea: Hope, Truth, and the US Involvement" on Tuesday, hosted by the American Studies Association in Thailand and sponsored by the US embassy.
Phum Mulsilp, a lecturer at Srinakharinwirot University's Faculty of Social Sciences, said the dispute over the South China Sea (SCS) stemmed chiefly from struggles for natural resources and the territorial claims that various countries have asserted.
According to the Thai Maritime Enforcement Command Centre, Thailand owns 24 trillion baht a year worth of life and non-life assets, transport and related industries and tourism in the SCS.
The SCS territories are governed by a convention defining the sovereign marine areas, contiguous zones and exclusive economic zones as well as the international sea-bed areas.
These definitions have a direct bearing on the territorial powers, rights and interests of states running coastlines in the SCS.
There exist neutral spaces where ships can sail through and aircraft fly over and undersea cables can be laid without undermining the peace and security of a country.
But Thailand, as a member of the Asean regional bloc, may be drawn into a conflict in the SCS in any given aspect, Mr Phum said.
At the forum, Adm Jumpol Limpikanont, a former deputy defence permanent secretary, highlighted China's controversial nine-dash line that it uses to back up its claim of sovereignty over most of the SCS, citing the country's historical expeditions that involved surveys of some contentious islands.
China's claim has led to present-day disputes over sovereignty between countries, which are made complicated by some countries granting investment access of its SCS areas to others.
Some SCS conflicts have been intensified by alliances and by war-game exercises and joint maritime military training.
The US, meanwhile, has consistently refused to acknowledge China's territorial claims in the SCS, citing freedom of navigation.
At the same time, China has tried to expand its "Silk Road" links both overland and at sea to advance its transport and trade capabilities.
"Smaller countries have had to be cautious. Some have acquired submarines to strengthen their defences. Others have befriended a superpower to secure some protection," Adm Jumpol said.
Thailand, on the other hand, has kept out of the conflict although it has previously played a role in mediating in the SCS dispute.
The country's strategy has always been to strike a diplomatic balance in the region. The best option for the country was to strictly abide by maintaining a focus on maritime peace and security.
Sitting on the fence, Thailand should act carefully and play its diplomacy card with countries that are parties to the SCS conflict.
The superpowers with stakes in the issue should also build trust by resorting to dialogue to settle differences.
Wibulpong Poonprasit, a political scientist at Thammasat University, told the seminar that historically, the SCS conflict began to brew after World War II when the superpowers, wanting the sea to be declared international zones opened to all countries, were competing for oil exploration.