Towards Better Cooperation: Legal Analysis on Coping with Climate Change in the Mekong River Basin

Lian Wang

doi:10.54097/mr3gjm30

Authors

Lian Wang

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54097/mr3gjm30

Keywords:

Climate Change, Adaptation, Mekong River Basin, Mekong River Commission, Upstream States.

Abstract

Mekong River is facing the severe Challenges of Climate Change, but the legal regime of the Mekong River has some deficiencies in terms of cooperation scope, substantive rules and procedural rules to adapt to Climate Change, such as lacking a basin-wide, and legally binding agreement, lacking enough Climate Change adaptative clauses in the agreement and basin-wide dispute resolution mechanism. Thus, this paper claims that riparian states should incorporate all procedure rules into the 1995 Mekong River, revise substantive rules in the 1995 Mekong River, negotiate a MOU on water allocation provisions between all riparian states, and enhance cooperation under LMC.

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References

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[2] Mekong Climate Change Adaptation Strategy and Action Plan, p. 7, available at https://www.mrcmekong.org/resource/ajg6oh.

[3] MRC Official Website, available at https://www.mrcmekong.org/our-work/topics/climate-change/.

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[21] 1995 Mekong River Agreement, art.5.

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[23] Ibid, art.7.

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[28] Ibid.

[29] MASAP, available at https://www.mrcmekong.org/assets/Publications/MASAP-book-28-Aug18.pdf.

[30] Ibid, p.11.

[31] LMC Official Websites, available at: http://www.lmcchina.org/eng/2017-12/14/content_41449855.html.

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[34] Ibid, p.361.

[35] bid, p.363.

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[37] Ibid.

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[40] UNWC, art.9. Although all riparian states, except Vietnam, do not sign the UNWC, this concept of obligation to cooperation has gained wide recognition. Besides, the obligation to cooperation is a general principle of international law provided in the UN Charter.

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