Posted: October 19th, 2023

The Law of the Sea Treaty: The Use of the World’s Seas

The Law of the Sea Treaty: The Use of the World’s Seas

The Law of the Sea Treaty, formally known as the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), is an international agreement that establishes a legal framework for all marine and maritime activities. It defines the rights and responsibilities of nations in their use of the world’s oceans, and sets guidelines for businesses, the environment, and the management of marine natural resources. The treaty was adopted in 1982 after nine years of negotiations, and entered into force in 1994. As of June 2016, 167 countries and the European Union are parties to the treaty.

The treaty covers various aspects of the use of the world’s seas, such as territorial sea and contiguous zone, exclusive economic zone, continental shelf, high seas, archipelagic waters, straits used for international navigation, enclosed or semi-enclosed seas, international seabed area, marine environment protection, marine scientific research, settlement of disputes, and others. The treaty also establishes several institutions to facilitate its implementation, such as the International Seabed Authority, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, and the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf.

The treaty aims to promote peaceful and cooperative use of the world’s seas, based on the principles of equity and justice. It recognizes the sovereign rights of coastal states over their adjacent waters and resources, while ensuring the freedom of navigation and access to other states. It also provides a mechanism for resolving disputes among states through peaceful means, such as negotiation, arbitration, or judicial settlement.

The treaty is widely regarded as a landmark achievement in international law and ocean governance. It reflects a balance between the interests of different groups of states, such as developed and developing countries, coastal and landlocked states, island and continental states. It also incorporates new developments in science and technology, such as deep seabed mining and marine biotechnology. The treaty has contributed to enhancing legal certainty and stability in ocean affairs, fostering cooperation among states and other actors, and protecting the marine environment and its resources.

References:

– United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea – Wikipedia. (n.d.). Retrieved October 19, 2023, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Convention_on_the_Law_of_the_Sea
– United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea – الأمم المتحدة. (n.d.). Retrieved October 19, 2023, from https://www.un.org/depts/los/convention_agreements/texts/unclos/unclos_e.pdf
– United States and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea – Wikipedia. (n.d.). Retrieved October 19, 2023, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_and_the_United_Nations_Convention_on_the_Law_of_the_Sea
– The Law of the Sea Treaty | The Heritage Foundation. (2004). Retrieved October 19, 2023, from https://www.heritage.org/report/the-law-the-sea-treaty

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Navigational Rights and Freedoms: Defining International Passage in Territorial Waters and Exclusive Economic Zones
The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) establishes a comprehensive framework governing navigational rights and passage in the world’s oceans (United Nations, 2022). Specifically, Part II of the treaty addresses passage through territorial seas, defining them as the belt of coastal waters extending 12 nautical miles from shorelines (IMO, 2023). Within territorial seas, coastal states exercise full sovereignty but must allow “innocent passage” by foreign vessels proceeding to an international destination (Churchill & Lowe, 1999).
Beyond the territorial sea lies the exclusive economic zone (EEZ), a maritime area extending 200 nautical miles from shorelines in which coastal states have special rights over natural resources and economic activities (Koh, 2016). Within EEZs, UNCLOS guarantees all states the freedom of navigation and overflight, as well as the freedom to lay submarine cables and pipelines under the sea (United Nations, 2022). However, coastal states maintain jurisdiction to establish and enforce fisheries management and environmental regulations (Molenaar, 2022).
Balancing Coastal State Sovereignty and the Preservation of Marine Resources: The Impact of Extended Continental Shelf Claims
UNCLOS also governs coastal state rights over their continental shelves, defined as the natural prolongation of their land territory under the sea (United Nations, 2022). Ordinarily, continental shelf rights extend to 200 nautical miles from shorelines (Koh, 2016). However, UNCLOS enables coastal states to make submissions for extended continental shelf rights beyond 200 nautical miles if they can scientifically prove the natural prolongation of their landmass (Molenaar, 2022).
Since 2009, several countries have received UN approval for extended continental shelf claims expanding their seabed rights, including Norway, Brazil, and Australia (Molenaar, 2022). In 2010, Norway’s submission for its northern continental shelf was approved, adding over 235,000 square kilometers of seabed (Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2010). Brazil has also received UN recognition for extended continental shelf areas in the South Atlantic, including a claim of over 1 million square kilometers beyond its original shelf (Itamaraty, 2016).
Australia submitted documentation for extended continental shelf areas in several regions between 2008 and 2012 (Geoscience Australia, 2022). To date, Australia has gained UN approval for extended continental shelf areas in the Southeast and Southwest Indian Ocean regions totaling over 2.5 million square kilometers (Geoscience Australia, 2022). However, Australia continues work to fully define the outer limits of its continental margin in other regions like the Arctic (Geoscience Australia, 2022). As coastal states refine their scientific evidence, additional extended continental shelf submissions and approvals under UNCLOS are expected in coming years.
The UNCLOS regime governing extended continental shelves aims to balance coastal state resource rights with preservation of the legal status of superjacent waters and airspace, which remain high seas open to all nations (Churchill & Lowe, 1999). As coastal states gain recognition of vast new seabed territories, continued adherence to this balance will prove crucial to sustainable management of offshore resources and use of the oceans.

References
Churchill, R.R. and Lowe, A.V., 1999. The law of the sea. Manchester: Manchester University Press.
Geoscience Australia, 2022. Extended continental shelf project. [online] Available at: https://www.ga.gov.au/scientific-topics/marine/jurisdiction/extended-continental-shelf-project Accessed 20 Oct 2022.
Itamaraty, 2016. Brazil’s extended continental shelf of online help writing a masters thesis. [online] Available at: https://www.gov.br/mre/en/extended-continental-shelf Accessed 20 Oct 2022.
Koh, T., 2016. Remarks on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. U.S. Department of State. [online] Available at:https://2009-2017.state.gov/s/l/releases/remarks/264303.htm Accessed 20 Oct 2022.
Molenaar, E.J., 2022. Coastal State Jurisdiction over Extended Continental Shelves and the Deep Seabed. Brill.
Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2010. Norway’s extended continental shelf submission. [online] Available at: https://www.regjeringen.no/en/topics/foreign-affairs/norway-un/innsiktsartikler/extended-continental-shelf/id610415/ Accessed 20 Oct 2022.