2008 Bangladesh–Myanmar naval standoff

The 2008 Bangladesh–Myanmar naval standoff was a naval standoff between the Bangladesh Navy and the Myanmar Navy over disputed territory in the northeastern Bay of Bengal. The standoff ended after diplomatic negotiations. In 2012, the two countries resolved their maritime boundary disputes at an international tribunal.

2008 Bangladesh-Myanmar Naval Standoff
Date2–7 November 2008
Location
Northeastern Bay of Bengal.About 30 miles south of St. Martin's Island of Bangladesh.[1]
Result

Bangladeshi Victory

  • Withdrawal by Myanmar
Territorial
changes		 Unchanged; dispute resolved at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea
Belligerents
 Bangladesh  Myanmar
Commanders and leaders
Fakhruddin Ahmed
Sarwar Jahan Nizam		 Than Shwe
Nyan Tun
Strength
From first Day:
1 Frigate:
BNS Abu Bakar
1 Large Patrol Craft:
BNS Madhumati
1 Submarine chaser:
BNS Nirbhoy
Later joined:
2 Missile boats
[2][3]

From first Day:
2 Warships
4 ships from Daewoo for exploring oil and gas.
Later joined:
2 Missile boats


[2][3]

Background

The Bay of Bengal has large untapped reserves of oil and natural gas.[1] In November 2008, Myanmar allowed the South Korean company Daewoo to explore the seabed in an area 50 nautical miles SW of St. Martin's Island.[4] The area was contested between Bangladesh and Myanmar as part of their respective exclusive economic zones.

Standoff

Citing international law, Bangladesh asserted that Myanmar should not allow any kind of activities in this debated territories till a solution. After Bangladeshi requests were not heeded, the Bangladesh Navy deployed three warships in the area, including the BNS Abu Bakr, BNS Madhumati and BNS Nirbhoy.[3] Myanmar deployed at least two naval vessels.[5]

Negotiations

The Government of Bangladesh said Myanmar was operating well within disputed territory. The Foreign Secretary of Bangladesh Towhid Hossain summoned the Myanmar ambassador and later himself flew to Yangon with a team of Bangladeshi diplomats. Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury, the interim Foreign Minister of Bangladesh, vowed that his country would protect its sovereignty and territory with "all necessary measures".[6][7] There was no statement from Myanmar.[4]

Withdrawal

On 7 November 2008, it was reported that Myanmar withdrew its warships and Daewoo began to remove its equipment from the area.[8]

Arbitration

In 2009, Bangladesh submitted its claims to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea. Both countries came to terms at the tribunal in 2012.[9]

References
  1. "Bangladesh and Burma send warships into Bay of Bengal". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  2. "Dhaka refuses to retreat, Myanmar withdraws two navy ships". Outlookindia. 2008-11-07. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  3. "Myanmar brings warships to explore Bangladesh waters". The Daily Star. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
  4. Johnston, Alan (2008-11-03). "South Asia | Bangladesh and Burma in oil row". BBC News. Retrieved 2017-09-27.
  5. "Bangladesh-Myanmar in standoff". Al Jazeera English. 2008-11-09. Retrieved 2017-09-27.
  6. "Bangladesh-Burma (Myanmar) maritime boundary dispute escalates". CSMonitor.com. Retrieved 2017-09-27.
  7. "Dhaka puts border guards on high alert: Villagers told to be ready for evacuation". Dawn.Com. 2008-11-09. Retrieved 2017-09-27.
  8. "Dhaka refuses to retreat, Myanmar withdraws two navy ships". Outlookindia.com. 2008-11-07. Retrieved 2017-09-27.
  9. "Judgment in Bangladesh-Myanmar Maritime Boundary Dispute | International Law Observer | A blog dedicated to reports, commentary and the discussion of topical issues of international law". Internationallawobserver.eu. Archived from the original on 2017-10-06. Retrieved 2017-09-27.
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