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Australia's parliament voted Monday to implement a maritime border treaty with East Timor, potentially unlocking billions in offshore oil and gas revenue after a bitter decade-long dispute.

The treaty is expected to provide a major boost to East Timor, one of Asia's poorest countries, by establishing new arrangements for sharing revenue from the Greater Sunrise gas fields in the Timor Sea.

It comes just days after East Timor's parliament voted in favour of ratifying the treaty, which the two countries signed at the United Nations in March 2018 and was the first-ever reached under a special conciliation mechanism of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Discovered in 1974, the lucrative Greater Sunrise fields - located 150 kilometres (93 miles) southeast of East Timor and 450 kilometres northwest of Darwin - are estimated to be worth between US$40 and $50 billion.

East Timor plans to develop the gas fields through a pipeline that would reach the country's south coast, with hopes it would provide much-needed employment opportunities, though Australia has cast doubt on the smaller nation's capacity to do so.

Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne said in the Senate Monday that the treaty "settled a long-running dispute over our maritime boundaries, agreed upon a pathway for the development of Greater Sunrise and laid the foundation for a new chapter in our bilateral relations".

Australia has seen its international reputation damaged by the dispute with its less powerful neighbour, with Dili dragging Canberra to the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague after contesting a previous deal signed in 2006.

East Timor wanted that treaty, which also covered the vast Greater Sunrise fields, torn up after Australia was accused of spying to gain a commercial advantage during the negotiations.

As the dispute escalated, a group of energy companies including Australia's Woodside, ConocoPhillips, Shell, and Osaka Gas decided to mothball plans to develop the fields.

Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese said during the House of Representatives debate on Friday that the lengthy dispute "has not done a great deal for Australia's standing as good neighbours to one of the newest nations on the planet".

Australia has continued to profit from an oil field stake that is set to be handed to East Timor under the treaty, taking an estimated AUS$60 million in the 12 months after the treaty was signed but not ratified, national broadcaster ABC reported.

East Timor was invaded by Indonesia in 1975 before it gained independence in 2002 after a UN-sponsored referendum in 1999, which will be marked by 20th-anniversary celebrations on August 30.

Australia's parliament voted Monday to implement a maritime border treaty with East Timor, potentially unlocking billions in offshore oil and gas revenue after a bitter decade-long dispute.

Australia's parliament voted Monday to implement a maritime border treaty with East Timor, potentially unlocking billions in offshore oil and gas revenue after a bitter decade-long dispute. The treaty is expected to provide a major boost to East Timor, one of Asia's poorest countries, by establishing new arrangements for sharing revenue from the Greater Sunrise gas fields in the Timor Sea. It comes just days after East Timor's parliament voted in favour of ratifying the treaty, which the two countries signed at the United Nations in March 2018 and was the first-ever reached under a special conciliation mechanism of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. Discovered in 1974, the lucrative Greater Sunrise fields - located 150 kilometres (93 miles) southeast of East Timor and 450 kilometres northwest of Darwin - are estimated to be worth between US$40 and $50 billion. East Timor plans to develop the gas fields through a pipeline that would reach the country's south coast, with hopes it would provide much-needed employment opportunities, though Australia has cast doubt on the smaller nation's capacity to do so. Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne said in the Senate Monday that the treaty "settled a long-running dispute over our maritime boundaries, agreed upon a pathway for the development of Greater Sunrise and laid the foundation for a new chapter in our bilateral relations". Australia has seen its international reputation damaged by the dispute with its less powerful neighbour, with Dili dragging Canberra to the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague after contesting a previous deal signed in 2006. East Timor wanted that treaty, which also covered the vast Greater Sunrise fields, torn up after Australia was accused of spying to gain a commercial advantage during the negotiations. As the dispute escalated, a group of energy companies including Australia's Woodside, ConocoPhillips, Shell, and Osaka Gas decided to mothball plans to develop the fields. Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese said during the House of Representatives debate on Friday that the lengthy dispute "has not done a great deal for Australia's standing as good neighbours to one of the newest nations on the planet". Australia has continued to profit from an oil field stake that is set to be handed to East Timor under the treaty, taking an estimated AUS$60 million in the 12 months after the treaty was signed but not ratified, national broadcaster ABC reported. East Timor was invaded by Indonesia in 1975 before it gained independence in 2002 after a UN-sponsored referendum in 1999, which will be marked by 20th-anniversary celebrations on August 30.

Australia ratifies maritime boundaries with East Timor

An international tribunal is due to rule Saturday on a dispute over Russia's holding 24 Ukrainian sailors and three naval vessels seized off the Crimea peninsula late last year.

Judge Jin-Hyun Paik of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea in the German port city of Hamburg was scheduled to announce its decision at noon (1000 GMT).&nbsp;

The incident in November in the Kerch Strait was the most dangerous direct clash in years between Russia and its ex-Soviet neighbour, which have been locked in conflict for over five years.

Russia in March 2014 annexed Crimea, and since then fighting between pro-Russian separatists and Kiev government forces in Ukraine's east has claimed some 13,000 lives, according to UN figures.

Ukraine's former president Petro Poroshenko insisted the sailors were "prisoners of war" and described their detention as "blatant proof that Russia continues to show cynical disrespect for human rights".

Moscow has accused the sailors of violating its maritime borders, and lawyers have said they could face up to six years in prison.

Kiev on May 10 asked the international tribunal to order Russia to release the sailors and the Berdyansk, Nikopol and Yani Kapu vessels.

Ukrainian foreign ministry spokeswoman Kateryna Zelenko told AFP she hoped for judicial support to help "break the deadlock on the release of sailors and military vessels".

Russia has denied any wrongdoing and said it does not recognise the jurisdiction of the court, a body with 168 signatories created under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, over the case.

Bogdan Bezpalko, a member of the Kremlin's International Relations Committee, said recently on Sputnik Radio that "Russia has not violated international law; Russia has reacted to aggression against it."

Stalemate

Earlier this month Ukraine's deputy foreign minister Olena Zerkal, addressing the tribunal, described the sailors' detention as "an additional illustration of Russia's continued disrespect for international law".

"Each additional day of detention, each interrogation, each court case aggravates the dispute between the parties," she said.

Russia has argued that the rights of the Ukrainian sailors have been strictly observed, including access to legal aid and medical attention.

French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel jointly phoned Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday to encourage him to resume the dialogue with Ukraine after the election of the new president, Volodymyr Zelensky.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo recently called on Moscow to show Zelensky a willingness to move toward "breaking the stalemate".

Pompeo said Washington "would in particular welcome the release of the Ukrainian crewmen detained near the Kerch Strait last year".

But since Zelensky was sworn in on Monday, tensions have risen with Moscow.

The new Ukrainian leader has urged Washington to impose more sanctions against Russia -- prompting a swift warning from the Kremlin that such action would not help end the war in the east.

An international tribunal is due to rule Saturday on a dispute over Russia's holding 24 Ukrainian sailors and three naval vessels seized off the Crimea peninsula late last year.

An international tribunal is due to rule Saturday on a dispute over Russia's holding 24 Ukrainian sailors and three naval vessels seized off the Crimea peninsula late last year. Judge Jin-Hyun Paik of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea in the German port city of Hamburg was scheduled to announce its decision at noon (1000 GMT). The incident in November in the Kerch Strait was the most dangerous direct clash in years between Russia and its ex-Soviet neighbour, which have been locked in conflict for over five years. Russia in March 2014 annexed Crimea, and since then fighting between pro-Russian separatists and Kiev government forces in Ukraine's east has claimed some 13,000 lives, according to UN figures. Ukraine's former president Petro Poroshenko insisted the sailors were "prisoners of war" and described their detention as "blatant proof that Russia continues to show cynical disrespect for human rights". Moscow has accused the sailors of violating its maritime borders, and lawyers have said they could face up to six years in prison. Kiev on May 10 asked the international tribunal to order Russia to release the sailors and the Berdyansk, Nikopol and Yani Kapu vessels. Ukrainian foreign ministry spokeswoman Kateryna Zelenko told AFP she hoped for judicial support to help "break the deadlock on the release of sailors and military vessels". Russia has denied any wrongdoing and said it does not recognise the jurisdiction of the court, a body with 168 signatories created under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, over the case. Bogdan Bezpalko, a member of the Kremlin's International Relations Committee, said recently on Sputnik Radio that "Russia has not violated international law; Russia has reacted to aggression against it." Stalemate Earlier this month Ukraine's deputy foreign minister Olena Zerkal, addressing the tribunal, described the sailors' detention as "an additional illustration of Russia's continued disrespect for international law". "Each additional day of detention, each interrogation, each court case aggravates the dispute between the parties," she said. Russia has argued that the rights of the Ukrainian sailors have been strictly observed, including access to legal aid and medical attention. French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel jointly phoned Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday to encourage him to resume the dialogue with Ukraine after the election of the new president, Volodymyr Zelensky. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo recently called on Moscow to show Zelensky a willingness to move toward "breaking the stalemate". Pompeo said Washington "would in particular welcome the release of the Ukrainian crewmen detained near the Kerch Strait last year". But since Zelensky was sworn in on Monday, tensions have risen with Moscow. The new Ukrainian leader has urged Washington to impose more sanctions against Russia -- prompting a swift warning from the Kremlin that such action would not help end the war in the east.

Global court to rule on Russia's detention of Ukrainian sailors

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Island states seek climate protection from the law of the sea

Australia ratifies maritime boundaries with East Timor

Global court to rule on Russia's detention of Ukrainian sailors