Grotius Dialogue
Grotius Dialogue: The U.S. - China Competition and the Law of the Sea
- Date
- Friday 19 June 2026
- Time
- Address
- Wijnhaven Building, room 2.60, Turfmarkt 99, 2511DP The Hague or online (hybrid event)
Please join us for a discussion with Prof. dr. Nengye Liu, Yong Pung How School of Law, Singapore Management University, to discuss the U.S. - China Competition and the Law of the Sea.
The world has entered into a dangerous era of “polycrisis”. This is seen in intersecting issues of rising inflation and economic recession, food and energy crises, climate change, mass extinction, pandemics, and geopolitical tensions. We are also living in a critical period of fast-evolving ocean law and governance. Meanwhile, U.S.-China competition is the current poster child of great power contest. But what does this power rivalry mean for the future development of the law of the sea and what are its implications for environmental sustainability of the world’s oceans? This paper aims to shed some light by examining three case-studies where U.S.-China competition is most related to ocean sustainability. First, this paper considers how China is using its power in the face of significant challenges of US dominance, to shape international fisheries law for expanding its fishing interests at sea. Next, the paper explores the impact of U.S.-China competition that affects environmental sustainability in the South China Sea. Thirdly, the paper investigates the clash between two worldviews: neoliberalism vs. common heritage of humankind and how it plays out in the development of the deep sea-bed mining regimes. Finally, it concludes by drawing connections across three case studies from lenses of power, order and ideology to suggest what is in store for legal development to achieve sustainability in the world’s oceans.