The 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea and continental shelf problems in Southeast Asia

This paper describes some of the claims made by states over the continental shelves at the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea and examines the political problems that have arisen from such claims. The definitions of the continental shelf adopted in the 1958 Convention and those debated at UNCLOS III are examined, and there is also a discussion of the eventual compromise formula adopted in the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea. Finally, there is discussion of two specific examples of boundary disputes from Southeast Asia (the Gulf of Thailand and the waters north of the Natuna Islands) which exemplify some of the political problems described in the first part of the paper.