Australia and Timor-Leste strike deal to end maritime boundary dispute

Updated

Australia and Timor-Leste have resolved their bitter and long-running dispute over maritime boundaries in the Timor Sea, in what is being described as a "landmark day" in the relationship between the two nations.

The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague today announced the parties reached an agreement on Wednesday over the disputed territory, which contains large oil and gas deposits worth an estimated $40 billion.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop hailed the breakthrough as a "landmark day in the relationship" between Timor-Leste and Australia.

"This agreement, which supports the national interest of both our nations, further strengthens the long-standing and deep ties between our Governments and our people," Ms Bishop said.

Timor-Leste — also known as East Timor — initiated the compulsory conciliation process last year in a bid to force Australia to negotiate a permanent maritime boundary.

A history of treaties in the Timor Sea In 1989 Australia and Indonesia signed the Timor Gap Treaty when East Timor was still under Indonesian occupation.

East Timor was left with no permanent maritime border and Indonesia and Australia got to share the wealth in what was known as the Timor Gap.

In 2002 East Timor gained independence and the Timor Sea Treaty was signed, but no permanent maritime border was negotiated.

East Timor has long argued the border should sit halfway between it and Australia, placing most of the Greater Sunrise oil and gas field in their territory.

In 2004 East Timor started negotiating with Australia again about the border.

In 2006 the CMATS treaty was signed, but no permanent border was set, and instead it ruled that revenue from the Greater Sunrise oil and gas field would be split evenly between the two countries.

Former Timor-Leste president Xanana Gusmao said the "long and at times difficult" process had helped the country achieve its dream of "full sovereignty and to finally settle our maritime boundaries with Australia".

"This is an historic agreement and marks the beginning of a new era in Timor-Leste's friendship with Australia," he said.

While the details remain confidential, the court said the agreement "addresses the legal status of the Greater Sunrise gas field … and the sharing of the resulting revenue".

In January, Timor-Leste terminated its 2006 treaty with Australia, which split revenue from the Greater Sunrise field 50/50 and delayed negotiations over a permanent maritime boundary for 50 years.

The country claimed the treaty was invalid because of allegations that Australia spied on cabinet ministers during negotiations to divide the oil and gas fields.

This week's agreement will likely be seen as a moral victory for Timor-Leste.

Labor's foreign affairs spokeswoman Penny Wong welcomed the breakthrough, saying the court's ruling brings to an end "more than 40 years of uncertainty over this maritime border".

"The maritime boundary dispute with Timor-Leste has strained our bilateral relations and has gone on too long," she said.

The deal will be finalised in October.

Until then, the details will remain confidential.

Topics: foreign-affairs, oil-and-gas, trade, international-aid-and-trade, government-and-politics, east-timor, australia

First posted</s>Australia’s agreement with East Timor to settle a permanent maritime boundary in the Timor Sea appears to bring to an end a long-running and often bitter dispute, which has marred relations between the two countries. Indeed, with this deal, Australia has again bullied its tiny near neighbor into acquiescing to a deal that is less than what East Timor believed it was entitled to.</s>MELBOURNE/THE HAGUE: Australia and East Timor have reached a breakthrough agreement on a maritime border, ending a decade-old row between the two nations that has stalled a US$40 billion offshore gas project.

The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague announced on Saturday that the neighbouring countries had reached an agreement "on the central elements of a maritime boundary delimitation between them in the Timor Sea" – but that details would remain confidential until the deal was finalised.

Arbitration began last year and the talks, hosted by Denmark, resulted in a deal on Aug. 30.

The countries agreed to establish a special regime for the Greater Sunrise field, paving the way for its development and the sharing of the resulting revenue, the court said in a statement.

"Until all issues are resolved, the details of the Parties' agreement will remain confidential," the statement said.

"Nevertheless, the Parties agree that the agreement reached on 30 August 2017 marks a significant milestone in relations between them and in the historic friendship between the peoples of Timor-Leste and Australia."

The leader of East Timor's delegation, chief negotiator and former President Xanana Gusmão, hailed the agreement as a historic moment which would mark the beginning of "a new era in Timor-Leste's friendship with Australia".

"I thank the Commission for its resolve and skill in bringing the Parties together, through a long and at times difficult process, to help us achieve our dream of full sovereignty and to finally settle our maritime boundaries with Australia," Gusmão said.

Timor, a former Portuguese colony, has struggled to develop as an independent nation since a violent break from occupying forces from Indonesia in 1999. Gas reserves, once claimed by Australia, is a key to its economic future.

The long-running political dispute has led the owners of the Greater Sunrise fields - Woodside Petroleum, ConocoPhillips, Royal Dutch Shell and Japan's Osaka Gas - to shelve the project. The fields are estimated to hold 5.1 trillion cubic feet (144 billion cubic metres) of gas and 226 million barrels of condensate, which analysts have estimated could be worth US$40 billion.

The existing maritime boundary is aligned with Australia's continental shelf, but East Timor has long argued the border should lie half way between it and Australia - placing much of the Greater Sunrise fields under its control. Australia had previously resisted renegotiating a permanent border but under pressure from the United Nations has agreed to enter talks with East Timor.

Australia Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said the agreement was a "landmark day" in the relationship between Timor-Leste and Australia.

"This agreement, which supports the national interest of both our nations, further strengthens the long-standing and deep ties between our governments and our people," Bishop said. Australia earlier this year agreed to allow East Timor to terminate an oil revenue sharing treaty between the two countries, while earlier treaties that govern production remain in place.

East Timor withdrew legal proceedings it launched over the past few years against Australia challenging the validity of the Treaty on Certain Maritime Arrangements in the Timor Sea, to advance the conciliation process, a joint statement said in January.

Having reached an agreement, the two countries will continue to meet with the commission in order to finalise talks in October.

The commission said the countries' will now begin to engage with other stakeholders in the Timor Sea regarding the implications of their agreement, "in particular with respect to the Greater Sunrise resource".</s>Bangkok: Australia and East Timor have reached agreement on developing billions of dollars of oil and gas reserves in the Timor Sea, ending years of bitter disagreement.

A deal has been reached on a maritime boundary as well as sharing arrangements for the $US50 billion Greater Sunrise oil and gas field.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop hailed the agreement struck in confidential talks at The Hague as a "landmark day" in relations between the two countries.

Xanana Gusmao, the hero of East Timor's struggle for independence and leader of his country's delegation in the talks, described it as an "historic agreement that marks the beginning of a new era in Timor-Leste's [East Timor's] friendship with Australia".

He said it will "help us achieve our dream of full sovereignty and to finally settle our maritime boundaries with Australia".

Mr Gusmao had demanded that gas from Greater Sunrise be piped to a yet-to-be built industrial complex on East Timor's remote western coast.

A joint statement released on Saturday said the countries have agreed on establishing a "special regime" for Greater Sunrise that addresses legal issues and is a pathway to the development of the field and the sharing of revenue.

The two parties also agreed on "central elements" of a maritime boundary in the Timor Sea, it said.

The deal will be finalised in October under the watch of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague. Until then details will remain confidential.

Michael Leach, an expert on the Timor Sea from Swinburne University of Technology, told Fairfax Media that while the full details are needed to understand "the full parameters" of the agreement "it is clearly a major step forward for resolution of the long-running dispute".

Professor Leach said the announcement was a "clear endorsement" of a conciliation process triggered by East Timor under the UN Convention of the Law of the Sea. The negotiations were the first of their kind under the UN convention.

"A resolution to this dispute clearly opens the way for a major improvement in relations between the two neighbours, which have been at a low point in recent years, with no ministerial visits since 2013," he said.

Participation in the conciliation process was compulsory for both countries but the outcomes are not binding.

The agreement will be seen by the Timorese as a huge victory by Mr Gusmao who doggedly pursued a better deal for his country.

Mr Gusmao's party was narrowly defeated at elections in July.

Agio Pereira, East Timor's agent in the proceedings, said "this agreement was made possible because of the strength and leadership" of Mr Gusmao who had "secured the future of our nation".

The key breakthrough in negotiations came on the night of August 30, the anniversary of the UN-supervised 1999 referendum when Timorese voted to break away from Indonesia and become the world's newest nation.

Professor Leach said the Labor Party's change in policy to favour East Timor, which shifted a previously bipartisan consensus with the Turnbull government, had an impact behind the scenes.

He said there was little doubt also that recent pressure from the United States for a resolution of the maritime boundary dispute, with the South China Sea controversy in the background, further pushed Canberra to reach an agreement.

Peter Taksoe-Jensen, chairman of the conciliation commission, said the negotiations "have been challenging and this agreement has only been possible because of the courage and goodwill shown by leaders on both sides".

Shadow foreign minister Penny Wong welcomed the breakthrough and said the dispute had gone for too long. 

 

 She said Labor committed last year to reaching a binding international resolution, either through bilateral negotiation or international arbitration.

 

 "This ruling vindicates Labor's position and brings an end to more than 40 years' uncertainty over this maritime border."</s>Australia and Timor-Leste have reached a historic agreement, concluding a long-running and bitter maritime boundary dispute over the Timor Sea through conciliation.

The deal clarifies the legal status of the Greater Sunrise gas fields, and establishes a regime to develop and share revenue from the resource, according to a statement released by the conciliation commission of the permanent court of arbitration in Copenhagen on Saturday.

The dispute over the Timor Sea concerns lucrative oil fields estimated to hold 9tn cubic feet of gas and 300m barrels of condensate and liquefied petroleum gas worth about $53bn.

Details of the deal remain confidential while Australia and Timor-Leste formalise the agreement and address “remaining issues and points of detail”, the statement said.

“Nevertheless the parties agree that the agreement reached on 30 August 2017 marks a significant milestone in relations between them and in a historic friendship between the peoples of Timor-Leste and Australia.”

Former Timor-Leste president, and head of its delegation, Xanana Gusmao, thanked the conciliation commission for helping to resolve “a long and at times difficult process, to help achieve our dream of full sovereignty and to finally settle our maritime boundaries with Australia”.

“This is an historic agreement and marks the beginning of a new era in Timor-Leste’s friendship with Australia,” he said.

In 2013 it was revealed the Australian government had bugged the Dili cabinet room of the Timor-Leste government in 2004, which Timor-Leste claimed was aimed at giving Australia an unfair advantage in negotiations of the maritime boundary.



In January Timor-Leste terminated the controversial Certain Maritime Arrangements in the Timor Sea (CMats) treaty that split oil and gas revenues equally with Australia, citing the unfairness of the alleged Australian espionage.

This commenced a fresh round of negotiations for a permanent maritime boundary in which Timor-Leste dropped espionage claims in the permanent court of arbitration as a “confidence-building measure”.

In May the former Timor-Leste president José Ramos-Horta told the Australian government to abandon its “unsubstantiated” legal case to extend its borders into the Timor Sea, arguing that Australia’s case that the border should follow the edge of its continental shelf “unsustainable law” that bordered on bad faith.

The foreign affairs minister, Julie Bishop, hailed the breakthrough as a “landmark day in the relationship” between Timor-Leste and Australia.

“This agreement, which supports the national interest of both our nations, further strengthens the long-standing and deep ties between our governments and our people,” she said.

Labor’s shadow foreign minister, Penny Wong, said the opposition “warmly welcomes the breakthrough agreement” between the two states.

“The maritime boundary dispute has strained our bilateral relations and has gone on too long. In my visit to Timor-Leste earlier this year it was clear that the relationship would substantially benefit from its resolution,” she said.

Wong said Labor had committed to reach a binding resolution, so the agreement amounted to a “vindication” of its position. She also committed Labor to multilateralism and the rules-based international system.

“If we want to insist that other nations play by the rules, we should adhere to them.”</s>He said it will "help us achieve our dream of full sovereignty and to finally settle our maritime boundaries with Australia".

Mr Gusmao had demanded that gas from Greater Sunrise be piped to a yet-to-be built industrial complex on East Timor's remote western coast.

A joint statement released on Saturday said the countries have agreed on establishing a "special regime" for Greater Sunrise that addresses legal issues and is a pathway to the development of the field and the sharing of revenue.

The two parties also agreed on "central elements" of a maritime boundary in the Timor Sea, it said.

The deal will be finalised in October under the watch of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague. Until then details will remain confidential.

Michael Leach, an expert on the Timor Sea from Swinburne University of Technology, told Fairfax Media that while the full details are needed to understand "the full parameters" of the agreement "it is clearly a major step forward for resolution of the long-running dispute".

Professor Leach said the announcement was a "clear endorsement" of a conciliation process triggered by East Timor under the UN Convention of the Law of the Sea. The negotiations were the first of their kind under the UN convention.

"A resolution to this dispute clearly opens the way for a major improvement in relations between the two neighbours, which have been at a low point in recent years, with no ministerial visits since 2013," he said.

Participation in the conciliation process was compulsory for both countries but the outcomes are not binding.

The agreement will be seen by the Timorese as a huge victory by Mr Gusmao who doggedly pursued a better deal for his country.

Mr Gusmao's party was narrowly defeated at elections in July.

Agio Pereira, East Timor's agent in the proceedings, said "this agreement was made possible because of the strength and leadership" of Mr Gusmao who had "secured the future of our nation".

The key breakthrough in negotiations came on the night of August 30, the anniversary of the UN-supervised 1999 referendum when Timorese voted to break away from Indonesia and become the world's newest nation.

Professor Leach said the Labor Party's change in policy to favour East Timor, which shifted a previously bipartisan consensus with the Turnbull government, had an impact behind the scenes.

He said there was little doubt also that recent pressure from the United States for a resolution of the maritime boundary dispute, with the South China Sea controversy in the background, further pushed Canberra to reach an agreement.

Peter Taksoe-Jensen, chairman of the conciliation commission, said the negotiations "have been challenging and this agreement has only been possible because of the courage and goodwill shown by leaders on both sides".

Shadow foreign minister Penny Wong welcomed the breakthrough and said the dispute had gone on for too long. 

 

 She said Labor committed last year to reaching a binding international resolution, either through bilateral negotiation or international arbitration.

 

 "This ruling vindicates Labor's position and brings an end to more than 40 years' uncertainty over this maritime border."</s>Australia and Timor-Leste have resolved their bitter and long-running dispute over maritime boundaries in the Timor Sea, in what is being described as a "landmark day" in the relationship between the two nations.

The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague today announced the parties reached an agreement on Wednesday over the disputed territory, which contains large oil and gas deposits worth an estimated $40 billion.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop hailed the breakthrough as a "landmark day in the relationship" between Timor-Leste and Australia.

"This agreement, which supports the national interest of both our nations, further strengthens the long-standing and deep ties between our Governments and our people," Ms Bishop said.

Timor-Leste — also known as East Timor — initiated the compulsory conciliation process last year in a bid to force Australia to negotiate a permanent maritime boundary.

Former Timor Leste president Xanana Gusmao said the "long and at times difficult" process had helped the country achieve its dream of "full sovereignty and to finally settle our maritime boundaries with Australia".

While the details remain confidential, the court said the agreement "addresses the legal status of the Greater Sunrise gas field…and the sharing of the resulting revenue".

In January, Timor-Leste terminated its 2006 treaty with Australia, which split revenue from the Greater Sunrise field 50/50 and delayed negotiations over a permanent maritime boundary for 50 years.

The country claimed the treaty was invalid because of allegations that Australia spied on cabinet ministers during negotiations to divide the oil and gas fields.

This week's agreement will likely be seen as a moral victory for Timor-Leste.

Labor's foreign affairs spokeswoman Minister Penny Wong welcomed the breakthrough, saying the court's ruling brings to an end "more than 40 years of uncertainty over this maritime border".

"The maritime boundary dispute with Timor-Leste has strained our bilateral relations and has gone on too long," she said.

The deal will be finalised in October. Until then, the details will remain confidential.</s>Australia and East Timor have struck a deal to end a contentious dispute over maritime borders that cut through lucrative oil and gas fields, officials said on Saturday.

Dili and Canberra have been at loggerheads for a decade over the Certain Maritime Arrangements in the Timor Sea (CMATS) agreement, which carved up future revenue from oil and gas reserves in the area.

The matter was before the Permanent Court of Arbitration and in a statement the Hague-based body said agreement had been reached "on the central elements of a maritime boundary delimitation between them in the Timor Sea".

Several matters still need to be thrashed out and "until all issues are resolved, the details of the parties´ agreement will remain confidential", it added.

But the court's statement did say that the deal "addresses the legal status of the Greater Sunrise gas field ... and the sharing of the resulting revenue".

Impoverished East Timor, also known as Timor-Leste and which gained independence from Indonesian occupation in 2002, relies heavily on oil and gas exports.

In 2006 it signed the CMATS treaty with Australia, which covers the vast Greater Sunrise gas field between the two nations that is worth billions of dollars.

But Dili later accused Canberra of spying to gain commercial advantage during the 2004 negotiations and demanded the treaty be ripped up.

Australia had argued the treaty was legal, binding and valid, but agreed to end it in line with Dili's wishes on January 9.

"This agreement, which supports the national interest of both our nations, further strengthens the long-standing and deep ties between our governments and our people," she said.

East Timor delegation head Xanana Gusmao, the country's former president, echoed those sentiments, hailing the pact after "a long and at times difficult process".

"This is an historic agreement and marks the beginning of a new era in Timor-Leste's friendship with Australia," he said.</s>THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — An international arbitration panel says Australia and East Timor have reached an agreement on key elements of a maritime boundary and revenue sharing from a natural gas field beneath the seabed between the two countries.

The Permanent Court of Arbitration, which has been leading talks between the two nations, said in a statement early Saturday that they will now work to formalize a deal.

Details of the accord weren’t immediately released, but the court says in a statement that it “addresses the legal status of the Greater Sunrise gas field” and establishes “a pathway to the development of the resource, and the sharing of the resulting revenue.”

The dispute over the maritime boundary and revenue sharing has long soured relations between East Timor and Australia.</s>THE HAGUE, Netherlands—Australia and East Timor have reached an agreement on key elements of a maritime boundary and revenue sharing from a natural-gas field beneath the seabed between the two countries, an international arbitration panel said.

The Permanent Court of Arbitration, which has been leading talks between the two nations, said in a statement early Saturday that they will now work to formalize a deal.
Australia and East Timor settle a dispute between the two countries in the Timor Sea.