Lawfare and Sea Power: A Historical Perspective

Four hundred years ago, the United East India Company hired Hugo Grotius, who would later be memorialized as the “father of international law,” to legitimize Dutch sea power in the South China Sea. Dennis Harbin illustrates that Grotius and the legal defense he crafted would have major implications for competition between democracies and autocracies centuries… Continue reading Lawfare and Sea Power: A Historical Perspective

Rock or Island: It Was an UNCLOS Call

Geospatial Intelligence (GEOINT) provides legal value in presenting historical and existing facts to judicial bodies in their efforts to achieve the peaceful use of the seas, consistent with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The 2016 South China Sea Arbitration highlighted the value of GEOINT and demonstrates how GEOINT will… Continue reading Rock or Island: It Was an UNCLOS Call