Look - it is Western countries who find the oil and extract the oil.

If poor undeserving third world countries feel entitled to international aid for their national spending/politicians Swiss Bank accounts

while diverting oil profits into sovereign funds/politicians Swiss Bank accounts

then too bad.

If a poor third world country doesn't like that situation just go out (like some politician(s) have attempted) and get a Chinese company to extract oil and gas in the Timor Sea.

See if I care.

Poida

Interesting article, but somewhat lacking in graphics. Only those with good local knowledge or skin in the game would be able to follow the discussion. Hence, the author ends up preaching to the converted.

This is a pity, because Australians, on the whole, know very little about their small close neighbour. We get to hear from articles such as this that Timor L'este is a political basket case, but is it really?

Timor has made great progress in education and health, for example, by reducing malaria incidence by a factor of 40 in the past decade. Yes, 40. How many Australian diseases have been as well managed in recent years?

How about a map please next time?

Well written and thoughtful article providing a new perspective on this issue.

A link is provided at the bottom of the opinion page to www.hydrographer.org, where a good detailed analysis can be found, with lots of graphics.

Hi Jeffrey

I take it you mean the large 51 page PDF http://hydrographer.org/Colloquium%20at%20University%20of%20New%20South%20Wales%2011b.pdf

This may be handy to http://dfat.gov.au/geo/timor-leste/Pages/australias-maritime-arrangements-with-timor-leste.aspx

Hello Jeffery,
Interesting opinion. Good to hear something new and different. I am tired or reading the demand to use "median lines" then as your read in more depth it becomes clear that they want borders that are clearly NOT median lines.

I have not seen a simple and clear demonstration of median lines so I created this slideshow linked below. It is not an intellectual piece with complicated arguments, neither is it comprehensive, but rather a very simple demonstration on a map showing points of equidistance in the Timor Sea. Hope someone looks at it and finds it useful.

http://www.slideshare.net/ChrisHarris36/points-of-equidistance-and-eez12a-copy