IndexSociopolitical claims: the political position of SloveniaThe historical importance of the Bay of Piran for SloveniaPopulation densityLooking to the future: possible solutionsThe delegation of Slovenia recognizes that natural resources are significantly underlying hostility between nations, particularly when ownership is disputed. Natural resources have historically acted as a catalyst for conflict and, unfortunately, continue to do so today. This case study briefly outlines the maritime border dispute arising from the geopolitical importance of Piran Bay, fueling friction between the nations of Slovenia and Croatia. Land divisions between nations existed prior to their declarations of independence. Although administrative in nature, they were eventually considered final state borders with the creation of two new nations, independent of the former Yugoslavia[1]. However, unlike the land borders, the maritime borders between the Yugoslav republics were not historically present, and therefore the Piran Bay and its right of possession have been contested. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on the topic "Why violent video games should not be banned"? Get an original essay Having recognized the complexity of the issue, Croatian Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor and Slovenian Prime Minister Borut Pahor signed an arbitration agreement [2] in November 2009 with the arbitration process starting in The Hague in June 2014. The verdict of Permanent Court of Arbitration process, which is legally binding in nature, was made public in June 2017 and met with resistance from Croatia, which withdrew from the process entirely. This causes undue pressure on Slovenia, both in terms of population and in terms of foreign policy. Sociopolitical claims: Slovenia's political position The disputed Piran Bay has two conflicting verdicts which both refer to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) Article 15[3] which states: "When the coasts of two States are opposite or adjacent to each other, neither State has the right, unless otherwise agreed between them, to extend its territorial sea beyond the median line the points of which are equidistant from the nearest points of the baselines from which the breadth of the seas is measured territorial sea of ​​each of the two States. However, the above provision does not apply when a historical title or other special circumstances make it necessary to delimit the territorial sea of ​​the two States in a different way from it.». Croatia requests (as outlined in the Position of the Republic of Croatia on the delimitation of the Piran Bay and related issues of the Dragonja River area) that the maritime border be mapped in accordance with the principle of equidistance; this means that Croatia is ideally in favor of a border in the center of Piran Bay. However, Slovenia recognizes this last section of UNCLOS, stating that the equidistance proposal is simply not applicable in this case because the Slovenia-Croatia conflict is a "special circumstance" [4] [5]. Slovenia maintains its claim for the following four reasons: Slovenia recognizes sovereignty over the entire Gulf of Piran. Slovenia draws attention to the fact that it has historically exercised jurisdiction over the Gulf of Piran; its authority over the area has been exercised since the Osimo Agreements of 1975,[6] and consequently it is evident that Slovenia administered the area both in the previous federation and after its independence. Besides that, legal proof of its jurisdiction can be found in the "Instructions of the Police Directorate ofRepublic of Slovenia".[7[8] Accordingly, Slovenia recognizes that, due to its economic and police control over the territory of the Bay Area before and after its independence, it holds the right to continue exercising its jurisdiction. Slovenia considers that the Croatian-Slovenian conflict is a special circumstance, which is why the first part of Article 15 of UNCLOS is not applicable. Slovenia reiterates that the conflict is a special circumstance because if the equidistant approach comes into force , Slovenia not will have access to international waters, while Croatia's main request is to maintain maritime borders with Italy.[4][5] Slovenia proposes that both these requests can be satisfied by following the last section of Article 15 of the UNCLOS and instead adopting the principle of equity. This resolution came into force on 20 July 2001 through the Drnvosek Racan agreement between the prime ministers of Croatia and Slovenia. In the signed agreement, Croatia would get 1/3 of the gulf, as well as the maritime borders with Italy, while Slovenia would get its corridor to international waters.[10] Despite the signing of the agreement, the Croatian population contested it, resulting in the solution never being implemented. However, Slovenia believes that the agreement was an ironclad binding as it was signed by both parties under Article 18 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties which states that: "[t]he consent of the State to be bound by a treaty may be expressed by signature, exchange of the instruments constituting the treaty, ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, or by any other means if so agreed."[9] Therefore, it becomes evident that it is a "circumstance special; and therefore an equidistant approach is not applicable. The historical importance of the Gulf of Piran for SloveniaThe UNCLOS states that the "historical title reason" is justified to implement the principle of equity the peninsula of Savudrija has always belonged to the bishopric of Koper, which is currently located in Slovenian territory. This confirms that the Bay of Piran is a historical bay belonging to Slovenia.[11]Density of populationThe population density on the Slovenian part of Piran Bay is densely populated; approximately 800,000 people live in that area. Therefore, Slovenian control over the entire Piran Bay is justified so that Slovenia can best serve its people.[11]Looking Ahead: Possible SolutionsSlovenia recognizes three possible verdicts to resolve the issue at hand: Due to the refusal of Croatia arbitrary ruling of 2017, Slovenia recommends that there be an open dialogue between the two nations through meetings and conferences. Slovenia hopes that this will lead to favorable relations in which any underlying hostility is eliminated. This will allow negotiations which will hopefully refer to the 2001 Drnvosek Racan agreement; in which Slovenia maintains access to the high seas and Croatia maintains territorial contacts with Italy. Croatia rejected the ruling before viewing it, so Slovenia would be willing to reject the arbitrary ruling even if Croatia formed a new ruling that works as more favorable to Slovenia than the original one. In the new verdict that Croatia intends to bring to the table, Slovenia is willing to compromise on two bases. First, Slovenia is willing to compromise the disputed territory in the Dragonja River valley, populated predominantly by Slovenians. Secondly, Slovenia is willing to give Croatia territorial contact with Italy. Both of these compromises are made in exchange for access to international waters. Furthermore, the.