U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea

The Law of the Sea (LOS) treaty is an international attempt to ensure the peaceful use of the world’s international waters and resources for present and future generations. After World War II, the international community asked the United Nations to synthesize all laws related to the oceans. In 1949, this process began and it was finally adopted in 1994. A key feature of the treaty is to permit countries to extend a 200-mile offshore jurisdiction over fishing, oil and gas development and some navigation.

To date, 160 countries (a total that includes the European Union) have signed and ratified the treaty while 21 nations have signed but not ratified. Four of the five nations bordering the Arctic Ocean have signed the treaty, including Canada, Denmark, Norway and Russia. The fifth Arctic country – the U.S. – has not yet ratified it. The Pew Charitable Trusts is running a campaign for U.S. ratification of the treaty that could provide a bedrock of Arctic cooperation.

As the ice melts, countries and private companies are eying the potential resources that may become available below the international waters of the Arctic Ocean. The treaty provides a mechanism for countries to extend jurisdiction over seabed resources such as oil and gas and deepwater minerals beyond the 200-mile limit if they can prove their continental shelf extends beyond that. The five Arctic countries are conducting geographic research to submit claims to an international tribunal, although the U.S. must ratify the treaty before it can do that.

Although this process has sometimes been portrayed as an Arctic land rush, the five countries bordering the Arctic Ocean recently affirmed that they view the treaty as the legitimate way to establish the rule of law in this region. This process will not apply to resources like fish swimming in waters above the continental shelf.