U.S. Accession to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea: Opportunity for Renewed American Leadership in the Era of Great Power Competition

Abstract

The failure of the United States to ratify the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) after facing many decades of political obstructions should be brought forth for reconsideration by the Senate under the context of the current geopolitical climate and as an instrument supportive of U.S. national security strategy. Current U.S. National Security Strategy has emphasized the need for renewed American leadership across the military and political spectrum in an era of "great power competition." UNCLOS provides the U.S. a necessary means to reinforce the rules-based order that it helped build. Ratification would also serve to enhance U.S. credibility with partners and allies, and reassert American leadership of the global commons within the UNCLOS framework.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Apr 28, 2020
Accession Number
AD1177539

Entities

People

  • Myles M. Butler

Organizations

  • Marine Corps University

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Agreements
  • Arctic Ocean
  • Commerce
  • Continental Shelves
  • Department Of Defense
  • Department Of State
  • East China Sea
  • Foreign Relations
  • Governments
  • Gray Zone
  • International Law
  • Law
  • Maritime Security
  • National Politics
  • National Security
  • Naval Operations
  • Oceans
  • Security
  • South China Sea
  • Treaties
  • United Nations
  • United States

Readers

  • East Asian Political and Security Studies within the Soviet Union
  • Government and Public Administration Law.
  • International Relations and European Studies