Ocean Coalition Presses for the Law of the Sea Treaty in the Washington Post
Filed under: Action,News & Resources,Policy
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From OceanLaw.org
The Law of the Sea Coalition placed this adverstisement endorsing US accession to the UN Convention on Law of the Sea in the Washington Post today (Wednesday, June 24). More information about the convention can be found in the Council on Foreign Relations report entitled “National Security and the Law of the Sea.” It is an excellent primer for people new to the issue who want a quick introduction as well as a review for people who have been long involved in the subject. This is not a superficial review – the meat of the report takes 45 pages.
Authored by Scott Borgerson, CFR Fellow in Ocean Governance, the work draws on the users of the ocean who depend upon the rule of law to carry out their activities at sea: representatives of the groups that are actually affected by US non-participation in the Convention; negotiators who gained their experience at the LOS Conference and in the bureaucracy crafting US positions; and as scholars in ocean law and policy. The antithesis of the ideology-driven unilateralist and neo-know-nothing opposition, Borgerson and his advisory committee represent the people with knowledge of ocean law and policy and an organizational interest in the reinforcement of the law of the sea with US adherence to the LOS Convention.
If you can give only one publication to a person who is interested in the current debate over the LOS Convention, I recommend this one. In the near future we can complement it with talking points and summaries for which this report will be an excellent source.
The report not only addresses the “why” of joining the Convention but the “when” as well, calling for action early by the Administration.
Particularly helpful are two and a half pages that itemize 11 ways in which non-party status hurts US interests.
The report’s conclusions do not end with a recommendation to join the convention as soon as possible. They go on to outline a foreign policy initiative including both symbol and substance. The symbol, of course, is renewed US commitment to the rule of law. The substance is to build upon accession to the Convention to increase our role as world leader in building security partnerships at sea, to implement programs and activities within the Convention that halt ‘creeping jurisdiction’ and excessive resource claims, to use our heightened stature as a champion of the rule of law at sea to help allies resolve their ocean-related disputes, to take an active role in the work of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental shelf and the International seabed authority, and to gain credibility for US leadership in environment and resource conservation issues.
The report also has valuable supporting documentation in its appendices:
- A critique of critical concerns related to National Security and National Sovereignty;
- President Clinton’s submittal letter requesting that the Senate give its advice and consent to accession to the Convention and 1994 agreement on Implementation; President Bush’s 2007 statement of support requesting favorable action by the Senate on US accession to the Convention; and,
- The 2007 Draft Resolution of Advice and Consent forwarded with approval by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to the full senate in December, 2007.
The chapter list is:
- Introduction
- Background and Context
- Brief History of the Law of the Sea from Hugo Grotius to Today
- Brief History of the Law of the Sea in the Senate
- Oceans and National Interests
- Arguments For and Against the Convention
- Strategic Imperatives
- National Security
- Economic
- Environmental
- Conclusions and Recommendations
- Appendices
- Review of Critical Concerns
- Presidential Documents
- Text of Draft Resolution of Advice and Consent
Addtional Resources:
- National Security and the Law of the Sea Report (PDF)
- Our Security Can’t Wait advertisement (PDF)
- www.oceanlaw.org
- www.ratifylawofthesea.org
