Publications on Ocean Development

The scope of marine scientific research has long been debated due to a lack of definition of the term in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The introduction of new forms and methods of ocean data collection adds another layer of legal uncertainty in this field. Marine Scientific Research and the Regulation of Modern Ocean Data Collection Activities Under UNCLOS thus strives to identify the possible limits of the existing legal framework, mainly the UNCLOS marine scientific research regime, and the ways in which the identified gaps can be bridged. In the analysis, Chuxiao Yu carries out two case studies: one on access to marine genetic resources and the other on operational oceanographic activities.

This book examines the South China Sea Arbitration between the Philippines and China, widely hailed as a landmark case in the law of the sea. Stefan Talmon argues that while the Tribunal assembled international lawyers of the highest repute and unrivalled experience, the case was nevertheless decided wrongly. He examines every step of the proceedings and critically engages with both the Philippines’ submissions and the Tribunal’s rulings. He finds that the Tribunal was lacking jurisdiction to decide the case, that some of the Philippines’ claims were also inadmissible, and that the Tribunal’s awards were tainted with procedural errors.

The International Legal Regime Relating to Marine Protected Areas in Areas beyond National Jurisdiction identifies the ‘participatory’, ‘competence’ and ‘geographical’ gaps in the international legal regime relating to marine protected areas (MPAs) in areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ) and provides insight into how to address these gaps. The book concludes that the gaps can be addressed only to a limited extent under the current international legal framework; however, the prospective international legally binding instrument (ILBI) on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ) might well make further contributions.

In Coastal State Jurisdiction over Ships in Need of Assistance, Maritime Casualties and Shipwrecks, Iva Parlov offers a comprehensive analysis of the rights and obligations of coastal States over ships in need of assistance, maritime casualties and shipwrecks under international customary law, treaty law and other international instruments. Important regime interactions are discussed in depth, most extensively the interaction between the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and regulations adopted at the International Maritime Organization, but also between conventional and customary law, public and private law. In contrast to the existing literature that mostly focuses on separate issues such as intervention, places of refuge, salvage and wreck removal, this book takes a systemic approach to consider from the coastal State’s perspective jurisdictional problems at each stage of a maritime occurrence, deteriorating into a maritime casualty and ultimately into a wreck. Particular attention is given to legal differences associated with maritime zones and the physical state of a ship. Adding a temporal scale to the analysis, the book provides an insight into the legal developments since the Torrey Canyon (1967) disaster and offers some reflections on the directions in which the tide is flowing, not least in light of the recent European Union’s proposal for amendments of the IMO Guidelines on Places of Refuge.

The oceans provide a vivid illustration of the relationship between an ever-changing context and a formalistic legal framework. The 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, hailed as one of the greatest achievements of international law-making, is confronted with dramatically different present-day exigencies. Change in the Law of the Sea provides an analysis and synthesis of the mechanisms that allow this ‘old’ treaty to respond to its contemporary context, shining new light not only on how change occurs in international law, but also on how the sources of demand for change are themselves changing.

The legal regime of marine areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ) has received much attention in the last decades. The ongoing process in regards of an agreement on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in ABNJ, initiated in the early 2000s (BBNJ process) is crucial evidence of this. However, this process reflects entrenched interests and political and legal structures, muting other voices and alternative approaches. International Law and Marine Areas beyond National Jurisdiction investigates competing constructions of ABNJ and their role in the creation and articulations of legal principles, which provides a broader perspective on the BBNJ process.

A generation of legal pioneers imagined a decisive role for the law of the sea in the advancement of developing states. The jewel in the crown of that vision was the juridical recognition of significant wealth of the oceans as the common heritage of mankind. The Law of the Sea in the Caribbean gives an accounting of the reach of the law of the sea into Caribbean development. It argues for greater regional cooperation as a means of achieving the promise of the contribution of the sea towards the economic and social progression of Caribbean States.

State practice in the law of the sea has continued to evolve since publication of the 3rd edition of Excessive Maritime Claims in 2012. In this 4th edition, J. Ashley Roach has brought the text up to date, particularly as to the provisions relating to the balance of navigational rights and freedoms with the interests of coastal and island States. Of particular interest are the more detailed explanations of the phrase “freedom of navigation”; the expanded material on baselines and on the practice of archipelagic States, the revisions of the material on the continental shelf, on marine data collection, on submarine cables and pipelines, and US Ocean Policy. A new chapter has been added on islands and other maritime features.

This edition is dedicated to Dr. Robert W. Smith, the premier marine geographer.

During the four decades that have passed since the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea was negotiated, there has been considerable advancement in the knowledge of a number of important issues addressed in the Convention. Among those issues are marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction, including marine genetic resources; the continental shelf, including seafloor highs, and its outer limits; and deep seabed mineral resources. At the same time, as a consequence of global warming, fundamental changes are taking place in many areas related to the law of the sea. In particular, sea level is rising globally, which may affect baselines, maritime limits and boundaries of coastal States.

New Knowledge and Changing Circumstances in the Law of the Sea, edited by Tomas Heidar, which includes twenty-two Chapters by prominent legal and scientific experts, focuses on these critical developments, the challenges they pose to the existing legal framework, and the various ways in which States are addressing these challenges.

A plethora of international bodies and international instruments regulate, influence and shape what is happening in the oceans. The many regimes involved and the resulting legal cacophony contribute to persisting challenges in ocean governance. Regime Interaction in Ocean Governance: Problems, Theories and Methods identifies the problems raised by regime interaction in ocean governance, discusses the relevant theoretical approaches, and explores possible solutions. It ultimately highlights how regime interaction in international law, specifically in oceans matters, not only consists of a problem to be solved, but also of a phenomenon to be better understood and benefited from.

This third edition provides insights and reflections on developments in UCH law since the last publication in an expanded number of jurisdictions to provide a truly global picture. It represents an essential contemporary set of critical analyses on the evolution of the laws adopted by countries’ seeking to apply appropriate responses to conservation of UCH assets. With coverage of issues relating to sovereignty, shared heritage and responsible archaeology, the contributors, all experts in this fascinating area of enduring legal interest, offer cogent and contemporary insights and examples of best practice to secure meaningful legal apparatus to protect and conserve UCH.

‘This is the essential book today for understanding maritime security law” -Prof. James Kraska (US Naval War College & Harvard Law School)

The recrudescence of great power competition at sea raises several legal problems. Maritime Security Law in Hybrid Warfare brings together authors from various fields of international law to address such challenges in the legal intersection between naval war, military activities, maritime law enforcement, and hybrid warfare. This book explores the means for increasing legal resilience against the emerging trend of weaponization of commercial ships, underwater cables and pipelines, lawfare, and migration by hybrid adversaries.

The European Union and the Arctic brings together academics from a range of disciplines to discuss the EU's potential roles in shaping Arctic governance. The book is divided into three parts. The first part examines the EU’s current Arctic policy framework. The second part focuses on the EU’s engagement with Arctic governance at the regional level and encompasses the EU’s engagement with the so-called Arctic Five (five coastal States of the Arctic Ocean), providing examples of some of those relationships. The third part takes a sectoral approach, analysing the EU’s potential contribution to regulation of key human activities in the Arctic, including shipping, fisheries, oil and gas operations, and marine mammals.

Governance of Arctic Shipping: Balancing Rights and Interests of Arctic States and User States examines potential cooperative mechanisms for balancing rights and interests of Arctic States and user States in light of experiences with Southeast Asian cooperative mechanisms. This volume analyzes the applicable international regulatory framework with special attention to the roles of the International Maritime Organization and the Arctic Council. The rights, interests, positions and practice of Arctic coastal States are compared with those of user States, with particular emphasis on China, Japan and South Korea. The final chapters analyze cooperative arrangements in Southeast Asia, in order to explore if these could act as models to enhance cooperation among coastal States and user States in the Arctic.

With the transition to the commercial-scale exploitation of deep seabed minerals, the International Seabed Authority’s obligation to protect the marine environment is being tested. In The International Seabed Authority and the Precautionary Principle, Aline L. Jaeckel provides the first in-depth analysis of the Authority’s work in regulating and managing deep seabed minerals.

This book examines whether and to what extent the Authority is implementing the precautionary principle in practice. This includes the development of adequate environmental protection standards as well as procedural safeguards and decision-making processes that facilitate risk assessment and risk management. In doing so, the author offers an insightful example of how the precautionary principle can be translated into a practical management tool.

In Maritime Terrorism and the Role of Judicial Institutions in the International Legal Order, Md Saiful Karim offers a critical analysis of the role of judicial institutions in combating maritime terrorism. This book comprehensively examines the existing international legal framework for combating maritime terrorism and argues for a an updated framework to tackle modern threats. In particular, Karim highlights the important task of national courts in the prosecution of suspected maritime terrorists as well as the settlement of disputes arising from maritime terrorism. It fills in important gaps in the existing literature and proposes a path for the influence of international juridical institutions.

In Establishing Continental Shelf Limits Beyond 200 Nautical Miles by the Coastal State: A Right of Involvement for Other States?, Signe Veierud Busch undertakes a study of all coastal State submissions to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf and asks under which circumstances and to what extent States other than the coastal State may intervene in the process of establishing final and binding continental shelf limits.

After analysing relevant provisions in the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and the Commission’s Rules of Procedure compared with the practice of States and the Commission, Busch raises the overall question if the possibility for other States to block the work of the Commission may in fact be undermining the mandate and functions of the Commission.

Jurisdiction over Ships: Post-UNCLOS Developments in the Law of the Sea analyses international law developments in shipping since the adoption of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in 1982. The Convention’s rules on the rights and obligations of flag states, coastal states and port states, have by and large been accepted and adhered to by states, but the legal regime for the oceans is neither complete nor static, nor was it intended to be so. New issues have surfaced while old issues have changed their character. Developments in law and practice have already resulted in some divergences between the jurisdictional scheme outlined in UNCLOS and how states in reality exercise their jurisdiction over ships. In this book, 18 leading academics in the field study a number of such developments in more detail, providing a practical guide to the state of the law at present while at the same time offering insights into how international law develops in this field.

In Maritime Security Cooperation in the Guinea: Prospects and Challenges, Kamal-Deen Ali provides ground-breaking analyses of the maritime security situation in the Gulf of Guinea and its implications for shipping, energy security, sustainable fisheries as well as national and regional security. The book juxtaposes the growing strategic importance of the Gulf of Guinea against the rising insecurity in the maritime domain, especially from piracy. Ali points out key gaps in prevailing regional and international approaches to maritime security cooperation in the Gulf of Guinea and sets out several suggestions for combating piracy as well as other maritime security threats while effectively enhancing maritime security cooperation in the region.

In The Continental Shelf Beyond 200 Nautical Miles, Bjarni Már Magnússon explores various aspects of the establishment of the outer limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles and maritime boundary delimitations. Special emphasis is laid on the interplay between these processes and the role of coastal States, the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf and international courts and tribunals in this regard.

Magnússon convincingly argues that despite the possibility for tension to arise the relationship between the relevant institutions and processes is clear and precise and they together form a coherent system where each separate institution plays its own part in a larger process.

As the world’s coastal states go about dividing up the ocean floor, the work of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf plays an increasingly important role. The Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf: Law and Legitimacy examines the Commission from two different but interrelated perspectives: a legal analysis of the Commission’s decision-making; and a study of normative legitimacy related to the Commission and its procedures. Insights into the history of the development of the concept of the continental shelf in the law of the sea are offered, including an explanation of how the institutionalized method for ascertaining continental shelf limits in the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea came into being. Through a deep-ranging analysis of the Commission and its work, the book introduces a framework for assessing best practices, and will serve as a useful reference for academics, scientists and policymakers alike.

The Law of the Sea and the Polar Regions: Interactions between Global and Regional Regimes analyzes of the contemporary law of the sea and related areas of international law in Antarctica and the Arctic, with a particular focus upon the interaction of global and regional regimes.

The global component of the international law of the sea - principally the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea - applies to the entire marine domain in both polar regions but explicitly requires regional implementation or acknowledges its usefulness. This volume critically examines regional regimes for the Arctic and Antarctic on science, maritime security, fisheries and shipping by means of common research questions; thus enabling an overall synthesis and identification of trends, differences and similarities.

In Filling Regulatory Gaps in High Seas Fisheries, author Yoshinobu Takei investigates the regime of high seas fisheries from the perspective of international law and considers whether there are regulatory gaps in high seas fisheries and, if so, how they should be filled. The book focuses on topical issues such as the management of deep-sea fisheries on the high seas and the protection of vulnerable marine ecosystems.

In view of the current state of marine fisheries resources, together with ecosystem concerns, swift and effective action is required to improve fisheries management, in particular for high seas fisheries. Takei thoroughly analyzes the current state of affairs and convincingly suggests steps to be taken in the future.

Dependent Archipelagos in the Law of the Sea examines the archipelagic concept in international law of the sea with respect to dependent archipelagos, both coastal and outlying. The monograph offers a thorough examination of the regime of straight baselines, and the implications arising from their application to archipelagos. It further analyses the practice of States with regard to the delimitation of the maritime zones of archipelagos, and assesses its value both as an element contributing to the interpretation of the Law of the Sea Convention - especially related to the application of article 7 - and as a factor leading to new developments in international law with an emphasis on customary law.

Now in a third, revised edition, Excessive Maritime Claims by J. Ashley Roach and Robert W. Smith is designed for law of the sea and maritime law specialists. The book draws on published governmental material in the public domain, specifically the U.S., and addresses recent progress in maritime security, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction by sea, piracy, and protection of underwater cultural heritage.

As a result of significant developments in the law of the sea, primarily with reference to the 1982 Law of the Sea Convention, Excessive Maritime Claims provides up to date coverage of current affairs as well as introduce new topics such as: submarine cables, polar areas, environmental protection, sovereign immunity and sunken ships, and maritime law enforcement.

The 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea has been frequently referred to as the ‘constitution for the oceans’ and as one of the most important events in the history of modern international law. Representing one of the treaties most widely accepted by the international community, the adoption of the Convention had a long and difficult passage, explained in part by the varied and often irreconcilable interests at stake during the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea. In this context, one of the primary merits of the Convention is its successful accommodation of the interests involved, an accomplishment which has contributed to the view that the Convention constitutes one of the major compromises in the history of international treaty law-making.

A detailed dispute settlement system represents a significant achievement of the Convention, an aspect on which Dispute Resolution in the Law of the Sea focuses. The book aims at examining the resolution of disputes which have emerged since the Convention’s entry into force and at analyzing the role of compulsory procedures entailing binding decisions through the prism of general international law and jurisprudence. An overall evaluation of the effectiveness of the functioning of the dispute settlement system under the Convention is presented and annexes offer a compendium of the LOSC-related disputes together with various means involved in their resolution as well as maritime delimitation agreements and the provisional arrangements negotiated by States.

Flag of convenience fishing seriously undermines efforts to protect the marine environment. To counter this threat, Market Denial and International Fisheries Regulation rests on the logic of the most basic tenet of economics: if no market exists for a product then producers will cease to produce. Denying market access to the flag of convenience fishing fleet should significantly reduce instances of illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. In areas beyond national jurisdiction not only is market denial the most effective means of undermining the IUU fleet, it is, for most practical purposes, the only way to do so. To what extent, however, do the laws of the sea and international trade allow groups of States to close their markets to non-compliant fishing vessels?

Mexico and the Law of the Sea: Contributions and Compromises examines Mexico’s legal work at the Third UN Conference on the Law of the Sea. The volume focuses on Mexico's involvement at the regional Latin American meetings of Montevideo, Lima and Santo Domingo, in addition to its current domestic legislation—the Federal Oceans Act of 1986, in particular.

Readers will find an analysis of the legal regime Mexico applies to marine scientific research by foreign vessels, and the constitutional problems caused by the lack of a clear allocation of jurisdiction over islands. Mexico and the Law of the Sea: Contributions and Compromises emphasizes the maritime delimitation treaties Mexico entered into with the United States, Cuba, Honduras, Guatemala and Belize, and also includes an extensive Latin American bibliography on the law of the sea.

Drawing on papers presented at Trinity College, Dublin, in 2010, Selected Contemporary Issues in the Law of the Sea provides a cohesive discussion on various challenges involved with the law of the sea. International experts cover topics such as straight baselines, high seas/EEZ jurisdiction, the definition of, and jurisdiction over, piracy and submissions to the CLCS relating to outer continental shelf claims in disputed areas.

In addition, Selected Contemporary Issues in the Law of the Sea delves into topics seemingly neglected in contemporary literature. The permissible use of artificial constructions as basepoints is discussed, for example, as are human rights issues involved in boarding non-flag ships; and in the context of piracy, issues such as the Japanese and NGO (Greenpeace) attitudes to current interventions (so-called ‘eco-piracy’) by NGO ships to prevent Japanese whaling activities in Antarctic waters.

Dokdo: Historical Appraisal and International Justice concerns a highly contentious territorial dispute between Korea and Japan that threatens the security of Northeast Asia. Dokdo, the rocky islet in the East Sea (Sea of Japan), is currently disputed between Korea and Japan. The various issues surrounding Dokdo are complex and multilayered, and thus require an interdisciplinary approach.

The determination of Dokdo’s ownership is, however, not the sole purpose of this book. Beyond the question of Dokdo’s ownership, this volume provides a broad framework for understanding the territorial disputes that bedevil the East Asian region. Readers will find balanced perspectives on this important issue in Northeast Asia utilizing international law, international relations, and history from highly qualified experts and scholars.

A number of rules of the international law governing the oceans were created at a time far removed from the challenges of the present day. The principle of the freedom of the high seas and its corollary of flag State exclusivity are archetypical examples of this. Today these rules may appear to be obstacles in the effort to combat a number of contemporary maritime threats such as migrant smuggling by sea. This study examines this multi-faceted threat to maritime security against the backdrop of the current international legal framework and State practice in order to establish whether this threat can be effectively addressed within the existing framework of the law of the sea.

A surprising number of maritime boundaries remain unresolved, and a range of reasons can be cited to explain why the process of delimiting these boundaries has been so slow. This volume addresses and analyzes some of these reasons, focusing on some of the volatile disputes in Northeast Asia and in North America. Scholars from Asia, the United States, and Europe grapple with festering controversies and apply insights gained from resolved disputes to those that remain unresolved. Islands continue to haunt this process, and the way in which they should affect maritime boundaries remains in dispute. The United States has a number of disputed boundaries with its neighbors to the north and south, and these are examined. Antarctica is a concern of all nations, and the regimes governing the Southern Ocean surrounding Antarctica are analyzed. The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea was created to allow countries to resolve their disputes peacefully, and two chapters look at how this new court is operating. The impact of sea-level rise on maritime boundaries is given special attention in the opening chapter.
This volume presents a wonderful collection of provocative chapters written by the top scholars in the field of International Ocean Law. It should help scholars, students, and decision makers to understand the current state of this field and to move some of the difficult disputes toward resolution.

"The introduction of invasive marine species into new environments, whether by ships’ ballast water, attached to ships’ hulls or via other means has been identified as one of the four main threats to the world’s oceans, along with land-based sources of marine pollution, over-exploitation of living marine resources and the physical alteration or destruction of marine habitat.
Increased trade and the consequent greater volumes of maritime traffic over the last few decades have served to fuel the problem. The effects in many areas of the world have been serious and significant. Quantitative data show that the rate of bio-invasions is continuing to increase, in some cases exponentially, and new areas are being found to be invaded all the time. As volumes of seaborne trade continue overall to increase, the problem may not yet have reached its peak.
In response, IMO first adopted Guidelines for Preventing the Introduction of Unwanted Organisms and Pathogens from Ships' Ballast Water and Sediment Discharges in 1991; while the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, recognized the issue as a major international concern. The IMO Guidelines have since been kept constantly under review and updated.
Subsequently, in February 2004, the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments was adopted. In providing a broad overview of the legal aspects related to marine pollution caused by ballast water and tank sediments, this book offers a pragmatic analysis of the current international legal system, and includes principles of international customary law and also references to a comprehensive environmental treaty law framework which relates the Ballast Water Convention to other treaties, such as the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), MARPOL and the Convention on Biological Diversity. With such a wide-ranging approach, this book will certainly provide a source of valuable information for all those with a requirement to pursue the subject in depth."

From the Foreword by Efthimios E. Mitropoulos

This book offers a comprehensive international law analysis of the European Union’s maritime safety legislation. This is a relatively novel field of activity of the EU, but its development has been very rapid. Since 1993, over 40 acts of EU law have been adopted, dealing with a variety of subjects, such as port State control, classification societies, vessel traffic management, ship construction, environmental protection and pollution sanctions. This legislation is analysed from the point of international law, notably the law of the sea and the international maritime conventions.
Regional legislation in a field that is traditionally regulated primarily by means of international conventions is bound to create tensions with the related international conventions and with well-established principles of international law. This study assesses how the EU has acted as a flag State, port State and coastal State and measures the trends in this development against the international legal framework. More detailed legal analyses are offered for specific aspects of EU legislation that are considered to be particularly interesting from an international law point of view. The relationship between EU law and international law within the internal EU legal system is also analysed from the specific perspective of maritime safety law.

These collected essays examine different aspects of the modern law of the sea. They address many key provisions in the United Convention on the Law of the Sea, including its historical development, the substantive rules governing navigation, resources, the regime of the high seas, maritime jurisdiction, the protection of the marine environment and the delimitation of maritime boundaries, as well as the settlement of disputes. The essays also review the Implementation Agreement of 1994 concerning deep seabed mining and the Implementation Agreement of 1995 concerning Straddling and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks. The author presents purely personal views on many negotiations and cases in which he participated. The essays, written between 1988 and 2006, will be of interest to everyone involved in the law of the sea.

The Law of the Sea Convention has now reached 25 years of presence in the international scene as a constitution for the oceans. It was the product of a long and arduous negotiation with a final product of delicate balance. The purpose of this book is to examine whether the basic premises and essential compromises of the Convention still hold true or whether the Convention, as a living instrument, has evolved into accommodating new needs and challenges to its regulatory scheme. The vehicle chosen is the jurisdictional interplay between the States, as flag States, coastal States and port States, and the world community at large in matters relating to navigation, fisheries, access to the biological resources of the deep seabed or even maritime security. The result confirms the solid foundations of the Convention and its ability to evolve and expand without upsetting its essential balance. A book useful to all those interested in the law of the sea and the structure of international law.

This work reassesses the doctrine, and present-day status, of historic waters in the law of the sea, particularly in the light of the most recent decisions of the International Court of Justice which have referred to the topic and in the United States, such as Alaska v. US (2005), in which the author acted as expert witness for the US federal Government. The latter case forms a continuous theme throughout the book. Detailed and critical examination is made of the alleged rules in international customary law, including matters such as burden of proof.

The European Community and its member states have shared competences in marine environmental matters. As a consequence, they have jointly acceded to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (LOSC) and most marine-related international agreements, which have been concluded in form of “mixed agreements”. This book looks at the manner in which the Community implements its international obligations in the specific fields of the prevention of oil pollution from ships, the regulation of ocean dumping and the protection of marine habitats through the establishment of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), especially looking at the division of competence with the member states and the conformity of the Community’s regulatory action with the jurisdictional framework established by the LOSC. By examining the subject from both a law of the sea and EC law perspectives, the books offers a comprehensive and interesting picture of the action taken by the Community to preserve the European marine environment.

Deep-sea genetic resources and the interest of the biotechnology industry in their exploitation are emerging as a significant challenge for international oceans governance. Focusing on the ecosystems associated with deep-sea hydrothermal vents in areas beyond national jurisdiction this book examines a range of emerging activities in the deep sea including bioprospecting, marine scientific research, mining and tourism and considers the effectiveness of existing international law and governance mechanisms to sustainably manage these activities.
It includes a detailed examination of the nature and extent of bioprospecting in the deep sea and its relationship with other activities such as marine scientific research. The book sets out in detail suggestions for how international law and policy regimes could respond to these challenges. As the first detailed study on this issue it will be useful reference for academics, diplomats, economists, scientists and policy makers alike.

This work analyzes the management of shared fish stocks; protection of the underwater cultural heritage; the possibilities of establishing marine protected areas and other means for safeguarding vulnerable marine ecosystems; the use of the high seas for intelligence as well as recent developments on interdiction of vessels on the high seas. Special emphasis is paid to the role of international courts and tribunals in the progressive development of the law of the sea as well as the ability of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea to accommodate new uses and challenges, such as new concerns, new technological possibilities, in particular, new contexts and functions of established rules. The 1982 Convention seems capable of coping with most of them, although it remains useful to explore its possibilities and limits.
This work, covering many aspects, will be useful to anyone interested in the law of the sea.

The delimitation of maritime zones is an important requirement for peaceful relations between neighbouring States. There are numerous examples of areas between States with opposite or adjacent coasts where sovereignty over an island or territory may not be contested but the delimitation of the continental shelf and exclusive economic zone is still pending. Under the Law of the Sea Convention, the delimitation of these zones shall be effected by agreement on the basis of international law. However, the Convention does not offer a definitive answer as to the methods that should be applied.
This publication includes contributions by Judges of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, eminent scholars and experienced practitioners. The papers deal with various aspects of maritime delimitation: the jurisprudence of international courts and tribunals and their relevance for delimitation, the impact of the Law of the Sea Convention, the role of legal practitioners and diplomatic negotiators, and delimitation under particular geological circumstances and in geographically complex regional situations. It is designed to provide insight and guidance to the complicated process of maritime delimitation.

The UN Fish Stocks Agreement was an effort to curb rising conflicts and unilateral actions regarding the rights and duties of States to exploit and manage straddling and highly migratory fish stocks. It broke new ground in international fisheries law in terms of incorporating new environmental principles, provisions on compliance and enforcement, and the duty of States to co-operate.
This volume explores how these commitments are acted upon by States in a selection of regional fisheries management regimes, covering fisheries from the European Arctic to the western and central Pacific Ocean. The cases chosen reflect the heterogeneity of institutional arrangements that are established at the regional level to manage straddling and highly migratory fish stocks. The authors review three established regional fisheries management regimes and two regional agreements establishing such regimes, negotiated following the UN Fish Stocks Agreement.

This book is about the contemporary problem of places of refuge for ships in need of assistance. There is an uncodified humanitarian custom providing a right to a ship in distress to assistance and protection by coastal authorities, including access to a place of refuge when necessary. With modern ships carrying large volumes of hazardous cargo and fuel, a disabled ship can pose a significant threat to the marine environment and interests of an affected coastal state. After being refused refuge, the ‘Erika’ and ‘Prestige’ became casualties causing severe environmental damage. Today, while the humanitarian right to assistance remains, the threat to the marine environment and the coastal state has to be considered in the granting of refuge.
Written by scholars and practitioners, the book consists of 20 multidisciplinary chapters addressing the law, policy and management aspects of the problem. Specific chapters focus on the experiences and approaches of Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Germany, United Kingdom and United States.

The Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Law of the Sea analyzes Vietnam's policies on the law of the sea in relation to the country's overall foreign policy goals and its position at the center of the South China Sea geostrategic region. It examines Vietnam's claims in zones of maritime jurisdiction and its regulation of maritime activities in the context of the 1982 U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea and against the backdrop of Vietnam's security interests, economic development, and regional leadership goals. The author explores Vietnam's maritime boundary disputes with its Southeast Asian neighbors and China and assesses their impact on regional stability.
This is the first comprehensive study to trace the evolution of Vietnamese policy and participation in law of the sea development from the 1958 First U.N. Conference on the Law of the Sea to the present. The book provides the background essential to an understanding of Vietnam's current maritime relations and of the challenge to incorporate Vietnam into a stable regional order. Law of the sea specialists, Southeast Asia area specialists, and those interested in the development of Vietnam's hydrocarbon and fishery resources will find this a particularly valuable resource.

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 entered into force on 16 November 1994. Since this date a single binding instrument has regulated the rights and duties of States at sea and regarding the sea. New concepts, such as the exclusive economic zone, archipelagic waters, transit passage through straits, and the International Seabed Area, are now fully recognized.
The fifteen member States of the European Union are a significant sample for analyzing the practice of States, or at least that of the Western industrialized States, as regards the law of the sea. They include major and small maritime powers, coastal and land-locked States, States with coasts on the Atlantic Ocean and States with coasts on semi-enclosed seas such as the Baltic and the Mediterranean, States with and without involvement in deep seabed mining and States with different interests as regards fisheries. The fact that they all belong to the European Union is a very important common feature, which amply justifies the choice made to study them together.
The book's aim is to give, through essays prepared by well-known specialists, a detailed survey of the attitudes and practice concerning the law of the sea of the member States of the European Union and of the European Community as such. The common positions of the member States and the results of their coordinated action also emerge from these essays. The fact that the member States and the European Community are now actively engaged in the process of becoming parties to the Law of the Sea Convention is certainly a major contribution to the consolidation of the Convention as a universal instrument, or at least as an instrument widely ratified by States of all continents and economic and political interests.

Until recently, the international community failed to adopt either an agreed limit for the breadth of the territorial sea or a satisfactory regime of fisheries in the waters adjacent to the territorial sea. This provoked an eruption of unilateral acts by which coastal states extended their jurisdiction towards the high seas. The Third U.N. Conference on the Law of the Sea accepted the establishment of a 12-mile territorial sea and a 200-mile exclusive economic zone.
While taking into account the non-existent rights and interests of the so-called geographically disadvantaged states and of states with broad continental shelves, the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea practically ignored existing rights and interests of habitual fishing states. It maintained the well-established principle of freedom of fishing on the high seas but with specific conditions.
Dissatisfied with the Convention's regulation of fishing on the high seas, a few states elected to hold a U.N. Conference on Straddling and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks which adopted the 1995 Agreement for the implementation of the provisions of the Convention relating to the conservation and management of such stocks. Similarly, some of these states, like Chile, Argentina, and Canada, adopted legislation extending their jurisdiction beyond their respective 200-mile fishing or exclusive economic zones.
This book explores these events in the historical development of the international regulations of fisheries and concludes with a look into recent developments in the area.

A treasure lies at the bottom of the oceans. This treasure takes the form of a legal and ethical principle which may illuminate the potential for an enriching international community in a world of growing disparities. It is the principle of the Common Heritage of Humanity.
The 1982 United Nations Convention on Law of the Sea delineated an Area and then proclaimed the Area and its resources `the common heritage of mankind'. The author suggests that the terms `common', `heritage', and `humanity' invite a larger perspective on the law underlying the Convention.
Cries of the Sea provides a unique view of `the deep blue sea' through the lens of the politics of international ocean law and policy and in particular through the exposition of the Common Heritage of Humanity as a fundamental principle of international law. The book explains why - and how - the Common Heritage principle constitutes an indispensable ingredient in any global programme for sustainable development. Legal philosophers and practitioners alike, in the ocean arena and beyond, will find that this work offers an intriguing intellectual and moral challenge.
This book received the first Arvid Pardo Prize for outstanding scholarship on the Law of the Sea.

The most significant characteristic of the Persian Gulf is the presence of huge oil-fields under the sea-bed of its shallow waters. On the other hand, the lack of understanding among the littoral states concerning the proper exploitation of these valuable resources has led to many conflicts, and is still considered as having a very high potential for conflict.
This work clarifies the international legal rules applicable to the region with particular attention to the special characteristics of the Persian Gulf, such as ethnic conflicts, lack of defined land borders, presence of numerous islands, reefs and shoals and the presence of transboundary oil deposits. It consists of a collection of materials relating to the law of the sea, including both domestic and international rules, conventions, maritime agreements, state practice, the jurisprudence of the International Court of Justice and others. The study analyses all of these important factors in order to find an equitable solution to the problems facing the international community.

The Third Conference on the Law of the Sea marked a watershed in the emergence of African diplomatic and legal activities within the international system. Analysis of those states' participation therefore not only provides a template for the study of bloc activity at this level; it also adds the comprehensive analysis of African participation at UNCLOS III and, finally, it should also reveal the means by which states can more effectively impact global political and legislative processes.
This study evaluates the extent to which the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) concept represents an attempt by African states to allot to international law the task of correcting inequities between nations, and the future implications of such linkage. It critically explores and analyzes the conceptual framework that initiated action by African states in UNCLOS III, and it examines their attempts to operationalize this framework by their substantive participation in the negotiations. Finally, the study explores the future implications of African activity in the international legal and political system.
In this evaluative process the author suggests the need for greater insight in conceptualizing the role of African states as a bloc within the international system. Only in this manner can a better appreciation be had of the important role African states are playing as contributors in the formation of contemporary international law.

This is the first comprehensive study on archipelagic regimes published since the adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea in 1982. The book traces the historical evolution of the archipelagic concept in international law and examines the definition of archipelagos and archipelagic states. The nature, status and regime of the waters of different types of archipelagos is examined and analysed from the perspective of archipelagic states and is based on the requirement of such states for territorial integrity and self-determination.
The book introduces the concept of `Ocean States' and links Ocean States with the archipelagic concept. The archipelagic concept is viewed as a practical as well as a functional basis for the determination of the territorial limits of Ocean States.

This volume presents an analysis of the maritime boundary delimitations of the Russian Federation. The focus of this analysis is the relationship between state practice and the rules of public international law applicable to the delimitation of maritime zones between neighboring states.
A first part establishes the contents of the law in this field. The main part of the work concerns an analysis of the position of the Russian Federation on the rules of maritime delimitation law and the practice of this state in relation to the delimitation of specific maritime boundaries with neighboring states.
The case study of the Russian Federation illustrates the significance of international law for the delimitation of maritime boundaries, while at the same time indicating the limits of the influence of the law on state behavior.

The volume surveys and discusses the range of current issues arising in the law of the sea from an Asian-Pacific perspective. There have been major developments in the law of the sea in the region: many current controversies (e.g. over archipelagic sealanes passage, drift-net fishing and environmental management) have their origins, or important exemplars, in the region. The contributors include international lawyers, political scientists and government officials with expertise in the region.
Particular aspects of the book which are of interest are: (a) its discussion of the perspectives of particular countries in the region (East Asia, Australia, the Pacific Islands); (b) its focus on issues of the marine environment and fisheries, including drift-net fishing; (c) discussion of specific developments which are of general interest (the Torres Strait Treaty and its implementation, maritime-confidence-building measures, dispute resolution); and (d) an overview of issues relating to high seas freedoms, including in particular transit through straits and archipelagoes. There is a concluding essay by the editors summarizing the various trends.

Small Powers at Sea presents an analysis of the marine policies of Denmark, Norway and Sweden from the First UN Conference on the Law of the Sea in 1958 until the conclusion of the Third UN Conference on the Law of the Sea in 1982. The main substantive chapters cover security aspects, continental shelf policies, fisheries, shipping and marine environment as well as deep seabed mining. The study is comparative and conducted from a political science perspective, discussing how to explain the rather divergent Scandinavian marine policies. A state-centric rational actor model can explain much of the variance, but other factors, including cognitive ones and the role of domestic politics, must be included to obtain a fuller understanding of Scandinavian policies over time and across issue areas.

Antarctica and the Southern Ocean cover one-tenth of the earth's surface. In a legal and environmental sense, Antarctica represents the geography of hope. It is the freshest and most pristine of regions, governed by a legal regime that offers Antarctica and its circumpolar water the unique possibility of becoming the world's first global wilderness preserve.
But in today's age of resource scarcity, Antarctica still provokes much political, economic and legal debate. Over the past decade, international attention has increasingly focused on the legal status of the continent, the potential for hydrocarbon exploitation offshore, and opportunities for harvesting circumpolar living marine resources. In this fascinating treatment, Christopher C. Joyner undertakes the first serious examination of the intimate relationship between Antarctica and the law of the sea. Using Antarctica as a case study, Joyner probes large conceptual issues of ocean law and politics. He uses the intricate details of oceanography and law to unravel the dynamics of the Antarctic Treaty System. In doing so, he examines how the changing importance of Antarctic issues has affected the development of the law of the sea for the region, the ways in which states define their national interests, and the accommodation through various negotations that have contributed to the development of law for governing the Southern Ocean.
While the study of law for the Antarctic is provocative in itself, this work goes much farther. The study critically analyzes the region's biogeography, the condition of sovereignty on the continent, the lawfulness of asserting jurisdictional zones offshore, and various legal implications for Antarctica's continental shelf, local island groups, circumpolar deep seabed, and the Southern Ocean's high seas. Moreover, the special legal efforts by the international community to protect the Antarctic seas from marine pollution and to conserve its living marine resources are comprehensively appraised.
Thorough, authoritative, and objectively reasoned, Antarctica and the Law of the Sea provides an insightful assessment of how law can progressively develop for a resource-rich region of the world's ocean. As such, it should appeal to a broad range of international lawyers and social scientists who are interested in international relations, political economy, environmental politics, and the law of the sea.

After an introductory chapter concerning the definition of `Straits used for international navigation', the author examines in detail the evolution of the question in the years prior to the convening of UNCLOS-III, during the preparatory works of the Sea-Bed Committee and throughout the Conference.
The second part of the book studies the legal norms set up by the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea concerning the regime of transit passage for maritime and air navigation applicable in most of the straits used for international navigation and the regime of innocent passage residually applied in the other straits.
In the final chapter, the author makes a critical appraisal of the new regimes of navigation and overflight in straits, exposes the implications of such regimes in Spain, analyzes the applicability of the Convention's regulations before their coming into force, and examines the practice followed in the last few years by the most important States which favoured or opposed the regime of transit passage.
From his position as Deputy-Head of the Spanish Delegation to the Law of the Sea Conference, Ambassador de Yturriaga participated from the very beginning in the work of UNCLOS-III and was an active protagonist in the debates of the straits' question.
The book offers a first hand testimony of the straits' negotiation, which will be extremely useful for scholars and students of the Law of the Sea.