Following reports that a Tongan Navy crew is setting up navigational beacons at Minerva Reef, the Fiji government has reiterated that Minerva Reef is within Fiji’s territorial waters and any challenge to this widely accepted territorial maritime boundary must be directed to the UN Dispute Resolution Mechanism in the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea.
The statement follows continuous claims by the Tongan government that the Minerva Reef falls within their waters.
However, the Fiji government said the reef falls within the legal and internationally recognized border of Fiji.
It said this has been endorsed by all Pacific Island countries over the years through acceptance of regional maritime maps issued by regional organizations like SOPAC, SPC, FFA and the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat.
It also said that to this day, Fiji’s international boundaries and Exclusive Economic Zone or EEZ has not changed from the one registered with the UN three decades ago.
Fiji said any attempt to dispute this must be directed to the relevant international and legal bodies.
It said that it will meet with any claimant to any of its maritime boundaries to amicably resolve any dispute, failing which it will pursue all legal actions available under the United Nations legal framework.
Story by: Vijay Narayan
