All 156 states, including Malaysia and Singapore, who have signed and ratified the convention are legally bound to its principles.

Established on Dec 10, 1982, Unclos is the international regime of law which governs all uses of the sea and its resources.

Singapore's Senior Minister of State Balaji Sadasivan had on Tuesday cited Unclos as the republic's right to claim a territorial sea and EEZ around Pedra Branca.

It is impossible for Singapore to claim even the full breadth of the 12 nautical miles of territorial sea as it would infringe on Malaysia and Indonesia's boundaries.

Middle Rocks, which was awarded to Malaysia by the International Court of Justice in The Hague on May 23, is only one nautical mile from Pedra Branca, which itself is only 7.7 nautical miles from Tanjung Penyusop, Johor.

To the south, merely 7.6 nautical miles away, is Indonesia's Tanjung Sading.

Following the ICJ's ruling, a joint technical committee was set up to carry out research, discuss and negotiate on the two marine features and South Ledge, whose sovereignty will be determined based on the territorial waters it eventually lies in.

One of the committee's most crucial tasks is to define whether the three marine features are islands or rocks.

This is a significant as different definitions have legal implications on the feature's boundaries and rights of the country.