Page 88 - NAVAL SCIENCE 3 TEXTBOOK

lEI International Law of the Sea

The international law of the sea has evolved over centuries, from of the twentieth centuq'. Even then, it was only the extent of the
both clistom and treaty. The most basic tenet of sea law is the prin- territorial sea nnd fisheries limits that was disputed, not the funda-
ciple stated by Hugo Grotius, 0 Dutch publicist considered to be mental concepts of sea law itself. The main precepts of the interna-
the Father of International Law, ill 1604: "No part of the sea mil)' tiol1allaw of the sea that have evolved over the centuries are
be regarded as pertaining to the domain of an)' gi\'en nation." This
The concept of li'ceciolll of the high seas, in which no nation
precept grew to become the basis of the "freedom of the seas" nd\'o-
may restrict an)' areas or resources to its exclusive use or
cated by Britain and the United St;.1tes ,md is now widely accepted
sovereignt),
by allmaritimc nations ill the world.
The concept of the territorial sea, which contends that coastal
Grotius's reasoning concerning freedom of the seas has been
states ha\'e near-absolute sovereignty over a narrow band of
proven correct by the subsequent history of the world. \Vestern civ-
waters adjacent to their coasts
ilization has become incrc<1singly dependent lIpon the L1SC of the
sea for trade. transportation, ,md communiGHioll of ideas. It is not The concept of special contigllolls zones, where special lim-
right for any nation to claim or reserve any part of the sea for exclu- ited jurisdiction prevails, Stich as inlhe stmits and channels,
sive use; the sea does not lend itself to possession or occupation, and where neither the rules of the high seas nor territorial seas
so any attempt to establish ownership would be difficult to defcnd pertain
with logic in court or with militar)' force. Ownership and the ability
United Nations Law of the Sea Conferences have met il num-
to use or control are two entirely difterent things, however.
ber of times during the last decades. The stated purpose of these
Since under international law a state has the right to defend
conferences has been "to de\'e1op rules for peaceful use of the sea-
itself and its citizens, it has become geIlCl'<llly accepted that a coastal
bed beyond the continental shelf to the entire spectrum of ocean
state should have the right of sovereignty over a Ilarrow band of
uses." The UN General Assembly recognized that there was mini-
the sea adjacent to its coast for Ilational security reasons. For cen-
mal chance for agreement, so it made pro\:ision tor the conference
turies this territorial sea wns considered to extend out 3 miles, the
to be postponed or adjourned until recalled whenever significant
approximate range of a canl10n shot from <l shore batte!,)' in Ihe
roadblocks ;:\rose. This proved wise indeed, for there was wide dis-
seventeenth century. Jt was not ulltil the early twentieth (cntm)',
agreemcnt, mainly between the industrialized states nnd the under-
when Imperial Russia claimed a 12-111ile exclusive fishing zone,
developed nations. The principal issues that the conferences have
that the 3-I11i1e limit WilS challenged. \Vhen the Bolsheviks took
had to deal with arc
over Russin, it was not long before the}' declared that this fisheries
zone was in reality i1 territorial sell in which the Soviet Union had The breadth of the territorial sea
exclusive sovereign rights. As the twentieth century progressed, Passage through straits
this breach in the formerly solid support for the 3-mile limit con- risheries
tinued to widen further as the result of modern technology, popu- Theseobed
lation growth, and politiC<ll change. The United States joined the M~rine pollution
majority of otiler maritime powers in accepting the principle of Scientific research
a 12-mile territorial sea in a Law of the Sea Conference in 197R,
Over the years some conventions have been agreed upon, but
conditional upon ,I law of the sea convention that provides for
no global agreement covering the mallY items on the agenda has
unimpeded passilge through, over, ilnd under international straits
yet been reached.
overbpped by the 12-mile limit.
The Impact of the Law on Navy Missions
Precepts of the Law of the Sea International legal rules affecting the deployment and nav-
igation of nilval \'essels have four possible adverse impacts. First,
The main ideas that had formed the body of customary internil-
the rules mily limit mobility. For example, restrictions 011 pns-
tionallaw of the se,l met little serious opposition until the middle

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