In June 2006 the European Commission published its so-called 'Green Paper' under the title: 'Towards a future Maritime Policy for the Union. A European vision for the oceans and seas.' In February 2006, looking ahead to this emerging vision, Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Peter Ehlers and Prof. Dr. Rainer Lagoni organised a seminar on 'Law of the Sea and Maritime Policy of the EC'. Participants were graduate scholars of the International Max Planck Research School for Maritime Affairs (IMPRS) at the University of Hamburg and graduate students. Their papers published here cover various legal and policy issues ranging from the maritime policy of the European Union relating to the 'Erika III Package', EMSA, security for ships and port facilities, the failed Port Package II, different aspects of fisheries management and law to sanctioning violations of MARPOL through criminal law.

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 entered into force on 16 November 1994. Since this date a single binding instrument has regulated the rights and duties of States at sea and regarding the sea. New concepts, such as the exclusive economic zone, archipelagic waters, transit passage through straits, and the International Seabed Area, are now fully recognized. The fifteen member States of the European Union are a significant sample for analyzing the practice of States, or at least that of the Western industrialized States, as regards the law of the sea. They include major and small maritime powers, coastal and land-locked States, States with coasts on the Atlantic Ocean and States with coasts on semi-enclosed seas such as the Baltic and the Mediterranean, States with and without involvement in deep seabed mining and States with different interests as regards fisheries. The fact that they all belong to the European Union is a very important common feature, which amply justifies the choice made to study them together. The book's aim is to give, through essays prepared by well-known specialists, a detailed survey of the attitudes and practice concerning the law of the sea of the member States of the European Union and of the European Community as such. The common positions of the member States and the results of their coordinated action also emerge from these essays. The fact that the member States and the European Community are now actively engaged in the process of becoming parties to the Law of the Sea Convention is certainly a major contribution to the consolidation of the Convention as a universal instrument, or at least as an instrument widely ratified by States of all continents and economic and political interests.

This book offers a comprehensive international law analysis of the European Union’s maritime safety legislation.

Jurisdiction over Ships: Post-UNCLOS Developments in the Law of the Sea analyses international law developments in shipping since the adoption of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in 1982. The Convention’s rules on the rights and obligations of flag states, coastal states and port states, have by and large been accepted and adhered to by states, but the legal regime for the oceans is neither complete nor static, nor was it intended to be so. New issues have surfaced while old issues have changed their character. Developments in law and practice have already resulted in some divergences between the jurisdictional scheme outlined in UNCLOS and how states in reality exercise their jurisdiction over ships. In this book, 18 leading academics in the field study a number of such developments in more detail, providing a practical guide to the state of the law at present while at the same time offering insights into how international law develops in this field.

The Development of the EU as a Sea-Policy Actor explores the marine and maritime policies of the European Union (EU), including fisheries, maritime transport, marine environment and maritime safety policies. These policies have made the EU an important sea-policy actor internally and externally.

Ocean governance has its legal basis in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and in numerous international maritime conventions. These rules help to balance conflicting interests in the uses of the oceans and seas and the protection and preservation of the marine environment. Their efficiency depends, however, on their enforcement. In 2007 Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Peter Ehlers and Prof. Dr. Rainer Lagoni organized a seminar on 'Enforcement of International and EU Law in Maritime Affairs'. Participants were graduate scholars of the International Max Planck Research School for Maritime Affairs (IMPRS) at the University of Hamburg and graduate students. Their papers cover various aspects of enforcement relating to the new Wreck Removal Convention and to rules of the European Union, such as port State control, enforcement measures in fisheries, the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA), protection of maritime boundaries and inquiries into maritime casualties. The volume also includes an analysis of the maritime policy of the EU as a new integrated approach to maritime activities.

Drawing on the essential premises of the Law of the Sea Convention as constotuion of the oceans, this book looks into the ways it can be evolved to accommodate new challenges to its regulatory scheme.