Southeast Asia is home to the Straits of Malacca and Singapore, one of the world’s most important sea lines of communication. The closure of the straits to international navigation may adversely affect the well-being of the global economy. On February 11, 2022, the Biden administration announced the new Indo-Pacific strategy, which will continue to deliver on AUKUS. For centuries, the proposed Thai Canal Project has been planned to revolutionize the shipping industry by bypassing the busy waters of the Straits of Malacca and Singapore. If the canal is built under the US Indo-Pacific Strategy, the pre-eminence of the Straits of Malacca and Singapore will not last long. This article analyzes the potential increase of navigation of nuclear-powered submarines through the Straits of Malacca and Singapore and its ensuing environmental implications from a viewpoint of international law. It discusses effects of the proposed canal plan in influencing the shipping industry should this “dream waterway” be constructed.

On March 18, 2020, Malaysian Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin declared the nationwide enforcement of the Movement Control Order to curb the spread of COVID-19. In September 2020, Malaysia entered the third wave of the outbreak. Active cases rose from 60 to more than 13,000. The government’s Ops Benteng stops illegal migrants, who are at high risk of bringing COVID-19 into Malaysia. This includes illegal Rohingya migrants, who enter Malaysia to flee persecution in their home country, Myanmar. There are approximately 150,000 Rohingya migrants in Malaysia and more are expected. This article examines the main reason behind the influx of Rohingya illegal migrants and discusses whether the Malaysian government should tighten its borders to safeguard against COVID-19. The government must prioritise its own citizens over the Rohingyas; the responsibility of managing this humanitarian disaster should be shared with other nations, particularly those party to the United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees 1951.

The Indonesian Ocean Policy (IOP) is a new milestone in managing its oceans since Indonesia ratified the UNCLOS 35 years ago. Indonesia underwent several paradigm shifts in strengthening ocean governance from 1957 to 2014. This research aims to analyse three paradigm shifts in strengthening ocean governance in Indonesia. The research revealed that the milestone of the first shift was the 1957 Djuanda Declaration, recognised by the UNCLOS in 1982, regarding the concept of an archipelago state, called the ‘ocean space paradigm.’ The second, which occurred in the Reformation period (1998-2014) was called the Ocean Development paradigm, while the third paradigm shift was after President Jokowi launched Indonesia’s vision as a Global Maritime Fulcrum. This third paradigm shift was also associated with the emergence of the IOP, which contributes to national development and pays comprehensive attention to the constellation of relations between the countries in Asia and various initiatives in the region.

Illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing may occur on the high seas or within a national jurisdiction. Several factors were identified as contributing to the occurrence of IUU fishing activities, among which is poor governance marked by limited and overlapping enforcement by related authorities. With very limited regional enforcement bodies and the absence of a regional multilateral agreement, IUU fishing is difficult to overcome. It means that issues relating to overfishing and other fishing conflicts like foreign vessels intrusions and use of illegal fishing methods will continue to be a problem. This paper identifies the Malaysia’s legal framework governing IUU fishing, as well as relevant international and regional laws and policies. The paper also discusses the devastating effects of IUU fishing to the global fish stocks and national economy. Although the existing framework is considered comprehensive, it recommends further stringent and fair law enforcement to combat IUU fishing in Malaysia’s waters.

There are approximately 116 straits used for international navigation around the world. Some of them are important international maritime chokepoints, namely the Dover Strait, Hormuz Strait, Straits of Malacca and Singapore and the Russian straits across the Northeast Arctic Passage. Due to the high number of navigational traffic going through these straits, vessel-source pollution is endemic in these waters. This article examines the applicable international legal framework on protection of the marine environment of straits used for international navigation such as Part XII of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and other related legal measures like International Maritime Organization conventions on protection of the marine environment. This article concludes by stating that the present framework is not sufficient in properly balancing two vital interests in the maritime world – protection of the marine environment vis-à-vis shipping.