Australia bows to East Timor to kill controversial gas field treaty
East Timor plans to negotiate a larger share of the oil and gas wealth in the seabed between the impoverished Southeast Asian nation and Australia by restarting talks on a maritime boundary
Australia and East Timor have agreed to begin negotiations on a permanent maritime boundary between the two countries, potentially ending years of dispute over the lucrative oil-rich Timor Gap and closing a chapter of mistrust and enmity between the two neighbours.
Canberra and Dili have agreed to tear up the controversial Certain Maritime Arrangements in the Timor Sea (CMats) treaty that divides future revenue from the Greater Sunrise oil and gas reserve, where an estimated US$40 billion worth of oil and gas lies beneath the Timor Sea.
East Timor has sought to abandon the agreement for years, alleging it was unfairly negotiated because of Australian espionage.
A dispute over how to delineate the sea boundary between the two countries has marred relations since East Timor won its independence in 2002, but most acutely in 2012, when Australia was revealed to have spied on East Timor’s government by bugging its cabinet room under the pretext of renovations.
The two countries have been taking part in a year-long compulsory conciliation, overseen by the permanent court of arbitration (PCA) in The Hague, over the maritime boundary dispute. The conciliation is taking place behind closed doors, but, in an unprecedented move, the foreign affairs ministers of Australia and East Timor, along with the PCA, announced key developments in the negotiations on Monday.