Battle over Falklands seabed
The claims were two of more than 40 made in the run-up to the 13 May UN deadline for seabed claims.
‘This is the sweep after which the maritime limits should be fixed... the final big adaptation of the world map,’ said Harald Brekke, vice-chair of the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (UNCLCS).
Countries can claim rights to resources on their continental shelves up to 200 nautical miles (370 kilometres) from their shorelines, but this can be extended to 350 nautical miles.
As the UNCLCS doesn’t have the power to arbitrate between countries, the competing claims create a freeze on exploitation beyond their 200-nautical-mile boundary until they reach an agreement.
Scientists working on the UK claim are confident that it won’t lead to an increase in hostility between the UK and Argentina. ‘We’ve been expecting Argentina to make a claim for some time, and Argentina has been expecting the UK to make a submission,’ said Dr Lindsay Parson of the National Oceanography Centre, who drafted the British claim.
However, the Argentine foreign minister, Jorge Taiana, said in a statement that Britain’s claim was ‘unacceptable and inadmissable’. ‘Such competences only correspond to the sovereign state: the Republic of Argentina.’
July 2009
‘This is the sweep after which the maritime limits should be fixed... the final big adaptation of the world map,’ said Harald Brekke, vice-chair of the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (UNCLCS).
Countries can claim rights to resources on their continental shelves up to 200 nautical miles (370 kilometres) from their shorelines, but this can be extended to 350 nautical miles.
As the UNCLCS doesn’t have the power to arbitrate between countries, the competing claims create a freeze on exploitation beyond their 200-nautical-mile boundary until they reach an agreement.
Scientists working on the UK claim are confident that it won’t lead to an increase in hostility between the UK and Argentina. ‘We’ve been expecting Argentina to make a claim for some time, and Argentina has been expecting the UK to make a submission,’ said Dr Lindsay Parson of the National Oceanography Centre, who drafted the British claim.
However, the Argentine foreign minister, Jorge Taiana, said in a statement that Britain’s claim was ‘unacceptable and inadmissable’. ‘Such competences only correspond to the sovereign state: the Republic of Argentina.’
July 2009
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