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Scandinavian Institute of Maritime Law
Law of the Sea
Class 2: Ports, Coastal/internal waters, territorial sea
and contiguous zone
February 2016
Henrik Ringbom
Professor II
Scandinavian Institute of Maritime Law
Outline
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Generally on maritime zones
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Baselines
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Internal waters
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Territorial sea (contiguous zone)
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Port state jurisdiction
Background - codification
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UNCLOS I (1958)
• Breadth of territorial sea
• Extent of coastal state fishing jurisdiction
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UNCLOS II (1960)
• No agreement reached
UNCLOS III (1973-82)
Unresolved LOS issues
 150 states participated
 Nine years of negotiations
 1982 UNCLOS
 Consensus on broad range of issues
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UNCLOS
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‘Constitution for the Oceans’
– ‘Package deal’ (all uses of the oceans)
– Framework convention
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166 Contracting Parties, indicative of
customary international law
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Rights and duties depend on maritime zone
and activity
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Delimitation, prescriptive end enforcement
jurisdiction
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Establishes institutions: e.g. CDCS, ITLOS
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Maritime zones
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Internal waters (IW)
Territorial sea (TS)
Contiguous zone (CZ)
Exclusive economic zone (EEZ)
Archipelagic waters (AW)
High seas (HS)
Continental shelf (CS)
The Area
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Scandinavian Institute of Maritime Law
Territorial
sea
Land
12 NM
24 NM
Exclusive
Economic
Zone
High Seas
200 NM
Internal waters - baseline
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Normal baseline (LWL) (UNCLOS art 5)
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Main exceptions:
– Straight baselines (art 7)
– Bays (art 10)
Special rules
Reefs
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Seaward of lowwater line
Ports
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Outermost
permanent
harbor works
Straight baselines
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General direction
Sufficiently close
to shore (within
24 nm?)
No guidance on
length (24 nm
baselines?)
Respect of other
states’ interests
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Bays
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Well-marked
indentation
Land-locked waters
More than mere
curvature
Area must be equal to
or larger than semicircle
Closing line - cannot
exceed 24 nm
Maximum area of water
Historic bays/waters
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Legal requirements:
• open, effective, long-term & continuous
exercise of authority
• acquiescence of foreign states
Low tide elevations
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Wholly within territorial sea drawn from
mainland or island
Islands and rocks
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Sustain human habitation or economic
life
Territorial sea only for rock, no eez or
continental shelf
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Rockall
BASELINES - SUMMARY
A. Indentation is larger than a semi-circle
whose diameter is two closing lines,
and is therefore a bay. Thus bay
closing lines (which total less than 24
miles) are baselines.
B. Straight baseline on indented coast
fringed with islands.
C. Indentation is smaller than the area of
semi-circle drawn on closing line.
Therefore it is not a bay.
D. An island generating its own territorial
sea.
E. Baseline is a line drawn across the
mouth of the river that flows directly
into the sea.
F. Harbour works forming part of the
baseline.
On the rest of the coast the baseline is
G. Low tide elevations. One is less than
the low-water mark.
12 miles from the coast and therefore
forms the baseline. The other is more
than 12 miles and therefore does not
affect the construction of the baseline.
Internal waters jurisdiction
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Starting point: sovereignty
Exceptions:
– Access to ports (?)
– Distress (customary law)
– Previously TS, straight baselines (art
8(2))
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Territorial sea – key issues
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(Breadth of the territorial sea)
– Art 3
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(Delimitation of territorial sea)
– Outer limit (Art 4)
– Adjacent or opposite neighbouring states (art 15)
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Rights of passage
Widespread adherence in practice
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143 states claim 12 nm (or less) territorial sea
• 7 excessive territorial sea claims
• More than 20 states rolled back excessive claims
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All states claim 24 nm (or less) contiguous zone
124 states claim 200 (or less) nm EEZ (no state
claim more)
Baselines and outer limit of the TS
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Territorial sea – innocent passage
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Meaning of passage (art 18)
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Innocence (art 19)
– Not prejudicial to peace, public order or security
– Series of activities listed in para 2
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Laws and regulations (art 21)
– CDEM Rules
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Other issues (submarines, warships, suspension etc)
Scandinavian Institute of Maritime Law
Law of the Sea
Class 3: International straits, navigational freedoms
February 2016
Henrik Ringbom
Professor II
TTS MEASURED FROM
COASTLINE
LAND
LAND
3NM
3NM
HIGH SEAS CORRIDOR
TERRITORIAL SEAS
HIGH SEAS CORRIDOR
TTS MEASURED
FROM
STRAIGHT BASELINES
LAND
3NM
INTERNAL WATERS:
HIGH SEAS CORRIDOR
LAND
3NM
HIGH SEAS CORRIDOR:
TERRITORIAL SEAS
12NM
LAND
LAND
TRANSIT PASSAGE
(OVERLAPPING TTS)
12NM
TERRITORIAL SEAS
HIGH SEAS CORRIDOR
Excessive Maritime Claims Block
Strategic Sea Lanes
With Transit Rights
Without Transit Rights
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Straits used for international navigation
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Background
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Five categories
– Straits governed by longstanding conventions (Art35(c))
– Straits governed by compatible agreements
– Straits with central corridors of HS or EEZ
– Straits subject to the regime of transit passage
– Straits subject to the regime of innocent passage
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Transit passage
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Some 116 states concerned
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Main distinctions to innocent passage
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Covers overfligt
Not suspendable
Submarines may travel submerged
Coastal state less powers (e.g. IMO approval of TSS)
Ships less rights to stop (continuous and expeditious, no
anchoring unless distress))
Iraq
Hormuz
Bab el’ Mandeb
Malacca
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Navigational freedoms (high seas)
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Main rule
– Freedom of navigation on HS (and EEZ) (arts. 87, 58(1)
– Requirements on flag states: e.g. genuine link (art 91),
GAIRAS (art 94)
– Exclusive flag state jurisdiction on high seas (art 92)
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Limitations
– Ordinary: ‘due regard’ (art 87(2)), obligations (art 94)
– Enforcement: Hot pursuit (art 111), environmental
enforcement
– Right of visit (arts 110): slave trade, unauthorized
broadcasting, piracy, drug trafficking, no flag
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More recent pressures
– 1988 Drugs convention, UNSC Resolutions under Ch VII,
SUA, bilateral arrangements