Russia does not recognize the unilateral change in the outer boundaries of the continental shelf announced by the United States. This was stated by the Russian Foreign Ministry.
As the department noted, the Russian side’s opinion was voiced at a session of the Council of the International Seabed Authority (ISAU), held from March 18 to 29 in the capital of Jamaica, Kingston.
“During the session, the Russian delegation announced its non-recognition of the outer limits of the continental shelf declared unilaterally by the United States in December 2023 beyond 200 nautical miles from the baselines from which the width of the territorial sea is measured in seven regions of the World Ocean,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement. RF.
As the department noted, “The United States, through unilateral actions, is trying to reduce the area under the jurisdiction of the body (IOMD. -
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), that is, the entire world community, the space of the seabed and acquire additional shelf areas for its own use (about 1 million sq. km).”
Washington
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© J. David Ake
The Russian Foreign Ministry emphasized that the unilateral steps of the United States do not comply with the rules and procedures established by international law.
“The Russian delegation criticized the selective approach of the United States to the use of international law with an emphasis on its rights and complete disregard for obligations, and rejected Washington’s latest attempts to use the norms of the 1982 convention solely to serve its own interests,” the ministry’s website states.
The Foreign Ministry also recalled that Moscow had previously sent the American side a corresponding demarche via a bilateral line.
Request for resources
Let us recall that on December 19, 2023, the United States announced the establishment of new external boundaries of its continental shelf. According to Washington, the country's shelf now begins beyond 200 nautical miles (370.4 km) from the US coast in the Arctic, Atlantic, Bering Sea, Pacific Ocean, two sections of the Gulf of Mexico and the Mariana Islands.
As reported by Bloomberg, the US State Department said that the expansion of the shelf boundaries “is determined by geography, not resources.”
The publication states that it is not yet known what resources can be developed in this zone and whether they exist there at all. However, Bloomberg recalls, “these claims come as Washington seeks to expand access to so-called critical minerals needed for industries such as electric vehicle batteries and renewable energy projects.”
“The Biden administration has recognized these sectors as key national security priorities,” the agency writes.
As noted by Russia's permanent representative to the ISA Sergei Petrovich, the United States, when announcing claims to expand borders, did not apply to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS).
According to Petrovich, the vast majority of countries, when establishing the boundaries of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles, turn to this organization for recommendations.
UN flag
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© Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto
“Such unilateral actions (USA -
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) contradict the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and pose a threat to the integrity of the regime of both the convention itself and the area declared the “common heritage of mankind,” the diplomat emphasized.
The US explains the refusal to apply to CLCS by the fact that Washington has not ratified the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The CLCS, in turn, was created to implement the provisions of this convention regarding the establishment of the outer limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles.
In its material, Bloomberg cites the opinion of Rebecca Pincus, director of the Polar Institute at the Wilson Center, who believes that unilateral actions by the United States could cause a negative reaction from other countries. She also believes that Washington's decision makes it less likely that the United States will ever ratify the convention, since the main reason for the United States to join was to apply to the CLCS to expand its borders.
Allies ignored
According to Vice Speaker of the Federation Council Konstantin Kosachev, the international community has the right not to recognize the new borders arbitrarily declared by the United States, since Washington acts without any international legal basis.
“Paradoxically, as a legal basis for the expansion of the shelf, the State Department refers precisely to the 1982 convention, which it calls “customary international law.” In other words, when it is unprofitable for Americans, they do not obey its norms, and when it is beneficial, they apply it as customary international law,” he wrote in his Telegram channel.
Kosachev notes that “increasing claims to the continental shelf in the Arctic Ocean is a general trend in the maritime policy of the Arctic countries.”
“This option is indeed provided for in international law if a state proves that there is an underwater extension of the mainland beyond 200 miles from the baselines. The only difference is that the Americans did it, as they say, dirty from an international legal point of view,” the senator believes.
The politician added that “this time the Americans have surpassed themselves, ignoring the interests of even their allies in the Arctic.”
“Now the United States has a territorial dispute with Canada and Japan over shelf delimitation,” Kosachev said.
Russian tanker MT Renda in the Bering Sea
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© US Coast Guard
He also recalled that other countries, including Russia, Canada and Denmark, “have been waiting for years for their claims to the Arctic shelf to be reviewed by the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf.”
Indeed, back in 2001, Russia submitted a general application for recognition of the continental shelf as Russian territory - it concerned both the Sea of Okhotsk and the Arctic. In 2004, it was decided to separate these applications. Ten years later, based on the results of extensive and expensive research carried out by Russia, the UN Commission approved Moscow’s request to include an enclave with an area of 52 thousand square meters in its continental shelf. km, located in the middle part of the Sea of Okhotsk.
On another application, members of the commission invited Russia to provide additional information, and in 2016 the Russian delegation submitted updated documentation on the Arctic.
“The last time Russia received positive recommendations from the commission to increase its shelf in the Arctic was in February 2023. This work continues now,” concluded Konstantin Kosachev.
“Change boundaries arbitrarily”
According to analysts, US claims to expand the shelf boundaries bypassing the CLCS are another example of Washington’s unilateral approach to resolving international issues.
“These are unilateral actions; they have nothing to do with international law. This behavior is typical of the USA. They either destroy international institutions and agreements that do not suit them, or simply do not comply with them. This adjustment of the world order by Washington has been going on for decades,” said Alexey Podberezkin, director of the Center for Military-Political Studies at MGIMO, in a conversation with RT.
The general director of the Center for Political Information, Alexey Mukhin, shares a similar opinion.
“The USA uses the principle “Arrogance is the second happiness.” They completely ignore international law and the commission, they set borders unilaterally, which, of course, is a violation,” the specialist said in an interview with RT.
The political scientist believes that the United States does not sign the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea because it would prevent them from arbitrarily changing borders.
“If the United States ratified this convention, it would have to follow international law. They have been following the current course for a long time, believing that this approach gives them the opportunity to arbitrarily change borders,” says Alexey Mukhin.
At the same time, Russia takes a completely different approach to this issue, the political scientist emphasized.
“Moscow, when declaring claims to expand borders, has always followed the protocol. Russia operates entirely within the legal framework. Our demands are legal, so they are fulfilled and our requests are satisfied. We are once again demonstrating that we act as a rule of law state, and the United States is once again proving that it acts outside the legal framework,” the expert concluded.