Search: UNCLOS

...the Sea that took place on Wednesday, but reportedly ended in a decision to postpone the vote until after the November elections. UNCLOS was also the theme of Peter Spiro’s post on the use of the term “sovereignty” by the American Sovereignty Campaign advocating ratification. Peter Spiro also discussed how non-state actors are increasing their influence in international organizations, including formally intergovernmental ones such as the WTO and the ITU. As every week, we also provided a list of upcoming events and the weekday news wrap. Have a nice weekend!...

...of the ICCPR, and admissibility of the case seems to be misplaced. Whilst the duty to rescue reflects a duty to protect life at sea, there is a difference between law of the sea obligations and obligations emanating from human rights law. The duty to rescue under 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and other treaties such as SAR Convention and the 1974 International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS Convention) is a law of the sea obligation, requiring no nexus of...

...to strengthen domestic criminal laws, and of course, to the overarching legal framework created by UNCLOS and SUA. This preambular paragraph from Resolution 2020 illustrates the Security Council’s legalistic approach: “Recognizing the need to investigate and prosecute not only suspects captured at sea, but also anyone who incites or intentionally facilitates piracy operations, including key figures of criminal networks involved in piracy who illicitly plan, organize, facilitate, or finance and profit from such attacks and reiterating its concern over a large number of persons suspected of piracy having to be...

...obligation requires States to take preventive measures to protect life through the provision, operation and maintenance of effective SAR services required under UNCLOS (Article 98(2)) and SOLAS (Annex, Cap V, Reg 7) and SAR (Annex, Cap 2.1.1.) Conventions. It is noteworthy that obligations of due diligence necessitate not only the adoption of appropriate rules and measures under these treaties but also “…a certain level of vigilance in their enforcement…” (Pulp Mills case, para 197). The obligation of due diligence translates itself into a duty to take all necessary measures to...

...of the right to die to terminally ill minors as an argument to attack on Roper v Simmons, and later replied to Eugene’s response. For those hungry for more reading: Kevin recommended a post by Sergey Vasiliev on the relationship between Perisic and Sainovic while Julian recommended Stephan Talmon’s book chapter on the question of UNCLOS jurisdiction in Philippines arbitration against China, and Duncan announced the winners of the 2013 ASIL Certificates of Merit. Finally, Jessica wrapped up the news and I listed events and announcements. Have a nice weekend!...

...Hafner-Burton and David Victor discussed how the book helps to identify new areas of international law open to empirical research . Rachel Brewster asked whether a liability rule is always the best option to operate remedies under international law, and Steve Charnovitz disagreed with some of the book’s analysis of the WTO . The authors response to the comments can be found here . In other posts, Julian updated us on the appointment of a second arbitrator in the Philippines-China arbitration under UNCLOS , and James Hathaway’s guest post announced...

...environmental agreements are also relevant. Both Ukraine and Russia are parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) applies given the risk of nutrient and pollutant flows from the Dnipro River into the semi-enclosed Black Sea. To date, however, to the best knowledge of the contributors, no formal actions have been taken under these treaties. Still, their provisions remain highly pertinent, offering potential avenues to address the ecological impacts of the dam’s destruction and to support the achievement...

...provide maritime situational awareness and protect vessels against multi-domain attacks at sea. It should remain defensive in nature. Forces deployed for the operation should act in compliance with applicable international law, including customary international law, including self-defence where conditions are met, to defend against an imminent or ongoing attack on their own, or third-party, vessels. The operation should act in full compliance with UNCLOS. emphasis added This decision indicates the growing practical importance of issues relating to the use of force against threats below the threshold of an armed attack. ...

...Economic Zone is groundless. Unclos allows coastal states to claim a 200-nautical mile EEZ, but coastal states have no rights to infringe on the inherent territory and sovereignty of other countries,” it said. China’s position is that this is a question of sovereignty, and not the Law of the Sea. There is no basis for the ITLOS to assert jurisdiction over this dispute, without China’s consent. This seems right to me. Except that no one is sure exactly what the basis of China’s sovereignty claim is, but assuming it has...

Both Eugene and Maggie disagree with my claim that politically-motivated acts of violence on the high seas were not traditionally considered piracy under international law, but were instead simply criminal acts that the offended state could prosecute as it saw fit. Here is Eugene (my emphasis; combining two comments): The rule is clear as both a matter of customary international law and the Law of the Sea Convention. On the latter score, the “private” ends requirement of the UNCLOS Art. 101 (which defines piracy) has to be read in conjunction...

...operations of maritime PMSCs (2022), operations of the floating armories continue to raise concerns. Recent incidents of sinking vessels used as FAs close to conflict areas, without international oversight of transfer/management of stockpiles on them, raise further concerns about their regulation. While the International Maritime Organization does not have specific regulatory framework guiding operations of FAs, the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) addresses criminal jurisdiction on board of a foreign ship, which is quite limited in relation to territorial waters, and shifts responsibility mainly to regulate...

...made to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) by the States parties to the UNCLOS. With regards to State practice, the Court relies on three key factors: a) vast majority of States that have not asserted their CLCS submissions an entitlement to a continental shelf that extends within 200 nautical miles from the baseline of another State; (b) only a small number of States that have claimed an extended continental shelf encroaching the maritime areas within 200 nautical miles of another State; and c) States objecting...