Irregular migration by sea leads states such as Italy and Australia to conduct maritime rescue operations involving refugees and other migrants. During these operations, states must deal with the question of where to disembark survivors. The law of the sea regime obliges states to ensure survivors are delivered to a ‘place of safety’, arguably requiring …More

According to media coverage, a ‘pirate attack’ took place off the coast of Suriname in April 2018. This submission assesses whether the violent incident meets the definition of piracy under international law, reviews different (legal) definitions, and highlights the importance of the location of the attack. It is argued that the use of the term …More

The Turkish Straits remain one of the most congested and perilous international waterways in the world. There have been a great number of incidents, resulting in physical damage, pollution and loss of life. A recent accident, where the bulk carrier ‘Vitaspirit’ suffered engine malfunction and crashed into the Bosporus coastline, has once again demonstrated the …More

The Directive of the European Parliament and the Council of July 2014 established a general framework for Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) among EU Member States. The Directive aims to promote the sustainable development of marine areas and equitable use of marine resources. Within this context, Greece has initiated the procedure of the Directive’s transposition into …More

On 24 December 2017, the United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 72/249 dealing with the development of an International legally binding instrument under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction. In line with the Resolution, a new intergovernmental conference met …More

This paper draws a parallel between mineral resources of the deep sea and marine genetic resources. The paper first discusses the discovery and first deep sea exploration of minerals bearing metals of economic interest. Secondly, the paper gives a brief historical overview of metal prices, and other external factors, such as the technological challenge and the global economic …More

This article suggests a principled approach to the negotiations on benefit-sharing from the use of marine genetic resources under a new international legally binding instrument on marine biodiversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ). It first reflects on the terms in which benefit-sharing has been discussed in the BBNJ negotiations until now, which have been …More

This paper seeks to question the prevailing orthodoxy on the need for the ‘package deal’ on the proposed international legally-binding instrument under UNCLOS on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction to address marine genetic resources, including questions relating to access and benefit sharing. Through an examination of …More

This article explores some of the ways in which marine genetic resources conceptually and normatively intersect with the concept and idea of commons. Through an analysis of the terminological ambiguities and semantic slippages characterizing the usage of the concept of commons in international law, the article addresses questions relation to the idea of global commons …More

The pending maritime delimitations between Spain and Morocco are highly complex and noteworthy due to the existence of diverse factors, namely the particularity that the delimitations shall be conducted in two different seas: the Alboran Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Moreover, various sovereignty issues must be addressed, such as the Spanish enclaves in North Africa, …More