US–Canada Beaufort Sea Maritime Boundary Dispute in the Perspective of International Law

• Published in: Moscow Journal of International Law
• Main Author: I. V. Bunik
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English; Russian
• Published: Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO) 2018
• Subjects: arctic law; law of the sea; maritime delimitation; beaufort sea; convention concerning the limits of their respective possessions on the northwest coast of america and the navigation of the pacific ocean 1825; special circumstances in international law; equidistance principle; indigenous people; estoppel principle; Law of nations; KZ2-6785; Comparative law. International uniform law; K520-5582; Arctic Ocean; Barents Sea; Beaufort Sea
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.24833/0869-0049-2018-2-126-137; https://doaj.org/article/3735e13260644f7c8b9b01a181c17ee0

Introduction. Maritime boundary disputes and exercising sovereignty in the Arctic are of great current interest in the International Law since there is no uniform understanding of the limits of applicability of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982 to the Arctic Ocean taking into account the international customary law and historic rights of the coastal states. One of such disputes is the US-Canada Beaufort Sea maritime boundary dispute which is of vast importance due to the hydrocarbon exploration of these states in the outlined area as well as due to the conclusion and entry into force of the Treaty between the Kingdom of Norway and the Russian Federation concerning Maritime Delimitation and Cooperation in the Barents Sea and the Arctic Ocean 2010.Materials and methods. The theoretical background of this research consists of works of distinguished Russian and foreign scholars and specialists in International Law. The analytical framework includes the treaties between Arctic coastal states concerning maritime delimitation (the Convention Concerning the Limits of Their Respective Possessions on the Northwest Coast of America and the Navigation of the Pacific Ocean 1825, Treaty concerning the Cession of the Russian Possessions in North America by his Majesty the Emperor of all the Russia to the United States of America 1867, Agreement between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the maritime boundary 1990), national legislation of the US and Canada, diplomatic notes. The research is based on methods such as formal logic, including analysis, synthesis, analogy and modeling historical research, as well as systematic, historical and comparative methods.Research results. Based on the results of the study, the author notes that there are considerable differences in the US and Canada’s legal stances concerning the disputed area of the Beaufort Sea, including in particular the opposing views of these states on the applicability of the Convention 1825 to their ...