FRONT MATTER.PMD - International Seabed Authority

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Contents
FOREWORD
It is a great pleasure to introduce this Compendium of Basic Documents on the
Law of the Sea, which contains for the first time in one volume the 1982 United Nations
Convention on the Law of the Sea, the two implementing agreements of 1994
and 1995, the Regulations on Prospecting and Exploration for Polymetallic Nodules
in the Area adopted by the International Seabed Authority and selected resolutions of
the General Assembly of the United Nations relating to the law of the sea. In addition,
the Compendium contains the Final Acts of the Third United Nations Conference on
the Law of the Sea and the United Nations Conference on Straddling Fish Stocks and
Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, as well as introductory material of great historical significance,
some of which has been reproduced by kind permission of the United Nations
from the 1983 United Nations’ edition of the Convention.
The Compendium has been compiled by the staff of the Office of Legal Affairs of
the International Seabed Authority, who also prepared the subject index. Although the
text of the Convention itself is widely available and has been published in many forms,
the significance of the present Compendium lies in the fact that not only is the Convention
reproduced together with all related instruments, but also that the index covers in
a comprehensive manner the Convention, its nine annexes and associated resolutions,
the two implementing agreements and the Regulations on Prospecting and Exploration
for Polymetallic Nodules in the Area.
The 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea forms the basis of the
modern legal framework for ocean governance. The Convention is an important contribution
to the rule of law. It sets out principles and norms for the conduct of relations
among States on maritime issues. As such it contributes immensely to the maintenance
of global peace and security.
It has been described as a constitution for the oceans and has, without fanfare, but
surely and imperceptibly, earned its place as a great achievement of the international
community. Its influence goes beyond the confines of the law of the sea. It has established
itself as part of the global system for peace and security, of which the Charter of
the United Nations is the foundation. The former Secretary-General of the United
Nations, Boutros Boutros-Ghali, at the inaugural meeting of the International Seabed
Authority in Kingston on 16 November 1994, spoke of the Convention as follows:
The dream of a comprehensive law of the oceans is an old one. Turning this dream
into reality has been one of the greatest achievements of this century. It is one of the
decisive contributions of our era. It will be one of our most enduring legacies.
The achievements of the Convention are many. It has resolved a number of critical
issues, some of which had eluded agreement for centuries. It reflects a delicate balance
between competing interests in the use of the ocean and its resources by taking a functional
approach to establishing the various maritime zones and the rights and duties of
States in those zones, including in the ocean space beyond national jurisdiction.