A Libertarian Nirvana at Sea Runs into a Stubborn Opponent: The Thai Navy

Chad Elwartowski could have done some basic research before starting his project.

Apparently he thought that Thai jurisdiction ends at 12 nm range (territorial waters). He build his platform 15 miles off the coast of Thailand. States can enforce laws in four areas: customs, taxation, immigration and pollution within 24 nautical miles (contiguous zone). That's anothe 12 nautical miles after territorial waters. Then there is 200 nautical mile EEZ.

Another thing libertarians don't seem to get is the customary law of the flag. As a (customary) rule, other states have no right to exercise prescriptive, enforcement, and adjudicative jurisdiction over foreign ships on the high seas. Stateless vessel (or platform) enjoys no protection whatsoever. There may be legal opinions that freedom of navigation should apply to them, but it's just an opinion.