Interplanetary Tribunals

Two factors led to the war starting in 2279.

The first was the clause in SSU's Interplanetary Charter that said claimed bodies were given ownership in perpetuity. Black Ocean's competitors argued this clause was outdated and shouldn't apply to unique and massive dwarf planets like Chariklo. They claimed the clause was written at a time when we didn't know enough about the resources available in the system.

The second was the issue of habitability. According to the Interplanetary Charter, planetary bodies that could potentially be habitable - either at the time of discovery or in the future - would be excluded from the claimant rules. Black Ocean's competitors claimed Chariklo was habitable: after all, Black Ocean had several mining colonies established on Chariklo, and many miners stayed on the surface for extended periods.

After no resolution could be reached, Black Ocean withdrew from the years-long tribunal at the SSU. They seized all public sales of iridium except to their own subsidies and allies, and stopped communicating externally except for via occasional press statements.