Transit passage
Transit passage is a concept of the
Within such straits (article 37 of UNCLOS), including Arctic straits, all ships and aircraft enjoy the right of transit passage (article 38 of UNCLOS), in accordance with Part III of UNCLOS, which means the right of navigation and overflight solely for the purpose of continuous and expeditious transit of the strait between one part of the high seas or an exclusive economic zone and another part of the high seas or an exclusive economic zone.
This navigation rule is codified in Part III of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.[2] Although not all countries have ratified the convention,[3] most countries, including the US,[4][5] accept the customary navigation rules as codified in the Convention. This navigation rule took on more importance with UNCLOS III as that convention confirmed the widening of territorial waters from three to twelve nautical miles, causing more straits not to have a navigation passage between the territorial waters of the coastal nations.[4]
Transit passage exists throughout the entire strait, not just in the area overlapped by the territorial waters of the coastal nations. The ships and aircraft of all nations, including warships, auxiliaries, and military aircraft, enjoy the right of unimpeded transit passage in such straits and their approaches. Submarines are free to transit international straits submerged since that is their normal mode of operation.[4] Transit passage rights do not extend to any state's internal waters within a strait.[2]
The legal regime of transit passage exists for all straits used for international navigation where there is not a simple alternative route, and excluding those instances where there is a long-standing international convention governing the straits, namely the
In contrast, the artificial maritime canals such as the Corinth Canal are generally not covered by the UNCLOS and fall instead under the respective national laws, with the three notable exceptions of the globally important canals due to their prior treaties: the Kiel Canal, the Panama Canal and the Suez Canal.[4]
See also
References
- OCLC 1267382284.
- ^ a b United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, Part III, Article 38
- ^ "Chronological lists of ratifications of, accessions and successions to the Convention and the related Agreements as at 3 June 2011". Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea. UN. Retrieved 2 January 2011.
- ^ ISBN 9789004172678. Retrieved 6 July 2019.
- ^ Reagan, Ronald (10 March 1983). "Presidential Proclamation 5030" (PDF). United States Department of State. Retrieved 2 January 2011.
- OCLC 1267382284.
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