Australia and the third United Nations conference on the law of the sea
Abstract
The Third United Nations conference on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS 111) that took
place between 1973-1982 was the most comprehensive political and legislative work ever
undertaken by the United Nations. Arguably the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea
that resulted from the conference in terms of the range of interests involved is the most
important multilateral treaty Australia has ever signed after the UN Charter itself.
Australia was an influential player at the negotiations in which almost every state in the
world participated. The Australian position on most issues at the conference was
accepted in the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea.
This thesis provides a history of Australian law of the sea diplomacy at UNCLOS 111.
The study seeks to analyse Australian policy objectives at the conference in terms of
Australian negotiating strategies and tactics. It is argued that at UNCLOS 111 Australia
moved away from its traditional position on law of the sea issues which was to support
the maritime powers. Instead Australia moved at the conference to align itself with
coastal state positions. The study seeks to identify Australia’s overall role in the
negotiations and analyse the reasons why Australian negotiators were remarkably
successful in promoting Australia’s interests.
The study draws certain lessons from Australia’s UNCLOS 111 experience that may be
relevant for Australian participation in future exercises in conference diplomacy. The
study concludes with a consideration of whether Australia should ratify the 1982
Convention and discusses Australia’s implementation of the Convention. Conclusions
are drawn on the relevance of Australia’s law of the sea diplomacy for the future direction
of Australian foreign policy.