United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)

• Main Author: United Nations, -
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: 1982
• Subjects: Oceans; Law and Policy; Arctic; Law of the Sea
• Online Access: http://library.arcticportal.org/1273/; http://www.un.org/depts/los/convention_agreements/texts/unclos/UNCLOS-TOC.htm

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), is the international agreement that resulted from the third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS III), which took place from 1973 through 1982. The Law of the Sea Convention defines the rights and responsibilities of nations in their use of the world's oceans, establishing guidelines for businesses, the environment, and the management of marine natural resources. All eight Arctic states are bound by the Convention, either statutory or through customary international law, the Convention thus governing the transportation, natural resource exploitation and continental shelf claims at the Arctic Sea.