CYIL vol. 9 (2018)

PETR VÁLEK CYIL 9 ȍ2018Ȏ its access to the sea vis-à-vis its neighbouring coastal States, second, by exercising its rights under the UNCLOS and the 1994 Implementation Agreement in the area of sea bed mining, and third, by participating in negotiation of a new UNCLOS implementation agreement. As such, within the law of the sea, some of the key international law questions of today’s world emerge: what are the rights and obligations of States, how to best regulate the protection of global environment, or how to share the natural wealth of the earth among them, be it minerals on the sea bed or marine genetic resources? This short list of the law of the sea issues relevant to the Czech Republic is certainly not complete. Inter alia , during every session of the UNGA the Czech Republic takes part in demanding negotiation of the resolution on the oceans and the law of the sea 79 that reaffirms crucial rules of this branch of international law. Furthermore, the jurisprudence of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea in Hamburg also deserves attention since, apart from the specific law of the sea questions, it touches time to time upon general issues of international law, such as State immunity and responsibility or interpretation of treaties. 80 Finally, the obligations arising for States from the law of the sea, in particular from Article 98 of the UNCLOS (Duty to render assistance), is discussed currently in relation to the migration crisis in the Mediterranean. If this article has attracted more attention to the law of the sea, particularly from the lawyers coming from the landlocked States – who may be asking the same question on the relevance of the law of the sea for their country – then its purpose was fulfilled. In this context, it is important that the legal advisers at the Foreign Ministries of the landlocked States pay appropriate attention to the developments of the law of the sea and attend the meetings of bodies set up under the UNCLOS, as the interests of their States may be concerned.

79 The last one is the UNGA resolution 72/73 of 5 December 2017, UN Document No. A/RES/72/73. 80 International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, Digest of Jurisprudence 1996-2016, Hamburg 2016.

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