Trends and issues in the law of the sea as applied in Latin America

Abstract

National legislation and practice of Latin American states on the law of the sea has evolved significantly in the past decade, evidencing a high degree of compatibility with the provisions of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. The latter has greatly influenced this evolution in providing for a common framework of accepted rules and standards, many of which are observed in spite of the Convention not having been in force for many years. The process of harmonization is particularly noteworthy in relation to the exclusive economic zone, the territorial sea, and the respective regimes of navigation and overflight. The few remaining discrepancies are more remnants of past confrontations than problems of present policies. A major new area of concern for Latin America is that of high seas fisheries, the regime of which is still largely unsettled in international law.