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China has been engaging more actively in the Arctic, as echoed by the Arctic Council's admittance of China as a permanent observer in May 2013. China's interest in the Arctic can to a large extent be explained by climate change shrinking the ice cover of the Arctic Ocean, which has sparked interest with respect to possible exploitation of natural resources and new shipping routes. One aspect of the possible exploitation of natural resources concerns the International Seabed Area. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute's policy paper on China's Arctic aspirations stated that "many Chinese scholars believe that UNCLOS does not entirely safeguard China's perceived Arctic interests" concerning the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles. One scholar noted that "[i]f the Arctic states succeed in their claims to extend their outer continental shelves, the international community's and China's right to fairly benefit from Arctic resources will be weakened". This article asks whether China can act as a watchdog against excessive continental shelf claims beyond 200 nautical miles by the littoral states and shield the idea of the common heritage of mankind, as enshrined in the Area. More precisely, the article will ask whether China can bring a case before an international court or tribunal against one of the littoral states if it establishes the outer limits of the extended continental shelf beyond what they are entitled to according to UNCLOS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the early 1970s, overseas Chinese students in the United States protested against Japan's claim to the Diaoyutai Islands. Emerging at a time when the rivalry between the Republic of China (ROC) in Taiwan and the People's Republic of China (PRC) on the mainland to represent China was at a critical juncture, the movement soon found itself caught up in the struggle between the two sides. It was out of the Protect Diaoyutai Movement that a new ideological constituent of overseas Chinese nationalism came to light, looking to the PRC as the hope for a sovereign China. It became a predominant force among overseas Chinese activists and the movement changed its direction from defending Diaoyutai to seeking Taiwan's reunification with the mainland. The paper discusses the factors that shaped and eventually radicalized the movement. It asserts that the event was a turning point in the evolution of overseas Chinese nationalism which transformed an undercurrent into a surging tide that gave rise to a new Chinese national identity among overseas Chinese in America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]