A Study On The U.S. Freedom Of Navigation Policy

To pursue the right of freedom of navigation has always been an important aspect in American foreign policy.Freedom of Navigation Program(FON Program)begun in 1979,symbolizing the establishment of America's freedom of navigation policy.From the Cold War to the 21 st century,freedom of navigation policy has contributed to America's pursuit of maritime hegemony.As the globe is moving towards multipolarization,this policy has become the highlight of American foreign policy,and served as a tool to preserve the American global hegemony.What was freedom of navigation policy? How did this policy avail America the maritime hegemony? What changes had it undergone and what features did it reflect,during its development process? And how should China deal with this policy?In order to answer the questions above,this thesis has adopted case study method,reference-based analysis and multidisciplinary approach to conduct a deep research on America's freedom of navigation policy.Within six chapters of the main body,the author tried to outline the development process of this policy,clarify its impacts and discuss responses from China.The first chapter traced the origin of the policy.Since the founding of the United States of America,the principle of freedom of the seas has become part of American diplomatic thoughts.After compromising,defending and abandoning the principle of freedom of the seas by the U.S.,this principle has developed into the principle of freedom of navigation.After the World War I,American president Thomas Woodrow Wilson tried to fit the principle of freedom of navigation into the international order,which was objected by the U.K..After the World War II,America became stronger and its navy witnessed noticeable progress.By taking national security and military needs into consideration,maritime mobility turned to be the core of the American freedom of navigation principle,while the pursuit for neutral trade gradually faded.The second chapter introduced the background and content of freedom of navigation policy.In the 20 th century,with the expansion of territory water,America assumed that high sea freedom was threatened,and thus called on all the countries to conclude a convention on law of the sea to protect the right of freedom of navigation.However,due to discontent on the rules of seabed exploitation,the U.S.did not sign the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea(UNCLOS).In 1979,during the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea,the U.S.initiated Freedom of Navigation Program,in order to challenge the “excessive maritime claims” defined by the U.S.,and protect America's freedom of navigation.This program was also the symbol for the establishment of the U.S.freedom of navigation policy.The third chapter explored the implementation and development of the U.S.freedom of navigation policy.There were two ways to implement Freedom of Navigation Program,one was diplomatic and the other was operational.In this chapter,the author made deep analysis on the diplomatic texts and conducted case studies on the Freedom of Navigation Operations in Sidra and the Black Sea,trying to give a comprehensive description about the implementation of the Freedom of Navigation Program.Freedom of Navigation Reports submitted by the U.S.Department of Defense were also reviewed,and the excessive maritime claims that were challenged by America's freedom of navigation operational assertions were summarized and classified.Changes and characters shown in the implementation of the freedom of navigation policy were discussed.The Freedom of Navigation Program was supported and improved by each U.S.Presidential Administration,which enabled the freedom of navigation policy continued and advanced.Thus the freedom of navigation policy has played an important role in American overall diplomatic strategy.The fourth chapter elaborated on the implementation of freedom of navigation policy in the South China Sea.Since the beginning of the 21 st century,the South China Sea gradually became the center for the U.S.to carry out the freedom of navigation policy.Partially the reason lied in the cognitive differences between China and the U.S.on freedom of navigation,but more importantly,the root cause was that the U.S.had great strategic interests in the South China Sea,and America regarded it as a field to test whether its hegemony could be preserved or not.Besides the Freedom of Navigation Operations,the U.S.also carried out other operational activities to challenge China's “excessive maritime claims”,such as patrol on the South China Sea.In addition,the U.S had given its smart power to a full play in order to support the freedom of navigation policy.The U.S.endeavored to advocate its freedom of navigation policy in the South China Sea by taking the advantage of the South China Sea Arbitration,hyping up its freedom of navigation operational assertions,and pushing its allies to participate in the joint patrols and maneuvers in the South China Sea.These were characters for the implementation of the U.S.freedom of navigation policy in the South China Sea.The fifth chapter probed the relationship between the freedom of navigation policy and UNCLOS.Freedom of navigation regulations under UNCLOS were briefly reviewed at the beginning.And then a deep analysis was conducted about the debate on whether the U.S.should ratify UNCLOS or not in terms of preserving America's freedom of navigation.Based on America's interests on freedom of navigation,the proponents and opponents had heated debates on U.S.accession to UNCLOS.The opponents believed that,remaining outside UNCLOS,America's right of freedom of navigation could be protected adequately.Firstly,this right was protected by the customary international law.Secondly,it was the American navy that had safeguarded America's right of freedom of navigation.Thirdly,the U.S.membership in UNCLOS may limit America's freedom of navigation.Thus it was not necessary to access to UNCLOS.The proponents believed that to ratify UNCLOS was not only necessary but also urgent.Firstly,the customary international law had the potential to make changes,and the membership in UNCLOS would offer a more solid legal basis for America's freedom of navigation operational assertions.Secondly,to some extent,accession to UNCLOS would alleviate the pressure and challenges when carrying out the freedom of navigation policy.Thirdly,accession to UNCLOS would enable the U.S.to extend more impacts on global maritime disputes.Although it was still unknown whether the U.S.would ratify UNCLOS or not,the possibilities for the U.S.to access to UNCLOS were increasing,especially considering the America's interests on freedom of navigation in the Arctic and the South China Sea.It was worth noting that,even though the proponents advocated that accession to UNCLOS was an important step to protect America's right of freedom of navigation,they insisted that Freedom of Navigation Program should not be replaced by UNCLOS,and should be maintained and implemented.Besides,the U.S.should make declaration to demonstrate that disputes concerning U.S.military activities are clearly excluded from dispute settlement under the UNCLOS.This was supported by both proponents and opponents.The sixth chapter focused on America's freedom of navigation policy's impacts on China and discussed China's responses.Under the name of protecting “freedom of navigation”,the U.S.has aggressively carried out freedom of navigation policy in the South China Sea.This has brought severe negative impacts on China's core interests and long-term development.Firstly,it threatened China's national security,especially on economic security and military security.Secondly,it undermined China's national image,unfairly blaming China for destroying peace and freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.Thirdly,it impeded the implementation of China's overall development strategy,especially obstructing the building of 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road.Based on the above negative impacts,three suggestions were put forward on how to deal with America's freedom of navigation policy.Firstly,promote domestic legislation and enhance international exchanges on relevant issues.Secondly,construct Community of Shared Destiny on the Seas based on maritime cooperation.Thirdly,offer public products for maritime security.Meanwhile,America's freedom of navigation policy has unintentionally pushed forward the development of Chinese overall maritime strategy and the navy.It has also offered inspirations on expanding maritime cooperation between China and the U.S.and improving China's maritime soft power.