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1. The General Assembly of the United Nations, by resolution 1105 (XI) of 21 February
1957, decided to convene an international conference of plenipotentiaries to examine
the law of the sea, taking account not only of the legal but also of the technical,
biological, economic and political aspects of the problem, and to embody the results
of its work in one or more international conventions or such other instruments as
it might deem appropriate. The General Assembly also recommended that the conference
should study the question of free acces to the sea of land-locked countries, as established
by international practice or treaties.
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2. The United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea met at the European Office of
the United Nations at Geneva from 24 February to 27 April 1958.
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3. The Governments of the following eighty-six States were represented at the Conference:
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El Salvador
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Afghanistan
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Federation of Malaya
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Albania
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Finland
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Argentina
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France
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Australia
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Federal Republic of Germany
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Austria
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Ghana
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Belgium
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Greece
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Bolivia
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Guatemala
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Brazil
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Haiti
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Bulgaria
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Holy See
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Burma
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Honduras
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Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic
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Hungary
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Cambodia
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Iceland
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Canada
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India
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Ceylon
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Indonesia
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Chile
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Iran
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China
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Iraq
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Colombia
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Ireland
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Costa Rica
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Israel
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Cuba
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Italy
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Czechoslovakia
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Japan
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Denmark
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Jordan
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Dominican Republic
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Republic of Korea
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Ecuador
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Laos
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Lebanon
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Spain
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Liberia
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Sweden
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Libya
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Switzerland
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Luxembourg
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Thailand
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Mexico
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Tunisia
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Monaco
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Turkey
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Morocco
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Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic
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Nepal
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Union of South Africa
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Netherlands
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Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
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New Zealand
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United Arab Republic
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Nicaragua
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United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
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Norway
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United States of America
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Pakistan
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Uruguay
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Panama
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Venezuela
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Paraguay
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Republic of Viet-Nam
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Peru
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Yemen
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Philippines
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Yugoslavia
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Poland
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Portugal
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Romania
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San Marino
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Saudi Arabia
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4. At the invitation of the General Assembly, the following Specialized Agencies had
observers at the Conference:
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations;
International Civil Aviation Organization;
International Labour Organisation;
International Telecommunication Union;
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization;
World Health Organization;
World Meteorological Organization.
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5. At the invitation of the General Assembly, the following intergovernmental organizations
also had observers at the Conference:
Conseil général des pêches pour la Méditerranée;
Indo-Pacific Fisheries Council;
Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission;
Intergovernmental Committee for European Migration;
International Council for the Exploration of the Sea;
International Institute for the Unification of Private Law;
League of Arab States;
Organization of American States;
Permanent Conference for the Exploitation and Conservation of the Maritime Resources
of the South Pacific.
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6. The Conference elected His Royal Highness Prince Wan Waithayakon Krommun Naradhip
Bongsprabandh (Thailand) as President.
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7. The Conference elected as Vice-presidents Argentina, China, France, Guatemala, India,
Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, Poland, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the United
Arab Republic, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the United
States of America.
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8. The following committees were set up:
General committee
Chairman: The President of the Conference
First Committee (Territorial Sea and Contiguous Zone)
Chairman: Mr. K. H. Bailey (Australia)
Vice-Chairman: Mr. S. Gutiérrez Olivos (Chile)
Rapporteur: Mr. Vladimir M. Koretsky (Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic)
Second Committee (High Seas: General Régime)
Chairman: Mr O. C. Gundersen (Norway)
Vice-Chairman: Mr. Edwin Glaser (Romania)
Rapporteur: Mr. José Madeira Rodrigues (Portugal)
Third Committee (High Seas: Fishing; the Conservation of Living Resources)
Chairman: Mr. Carlos Sucre (Panama)
Vice-Chairman: Mr. E. Krispis (Greece)
Rapporteur: Mr. N. K. Pannikar (India)
Fourth Commitee (Continental Shelf)
Chairman: Mr. A. B. Perera (Ceylon)
Vice-Chairman: Mr. R. A. Quarshie (Ghana)
Rapporteur: Mr. L. Díaz González (Venezuela)
Fifth Committee (Question of Free Access to the Sea of Landlocked Countries)
Chairman: Mr. J. Žourek (Czechoslovakia)
Vice-Chairman: Mr. W. Guevara Arze (Bolivia)
Rapporteur: Mr. A. H. Tabibi (Afghanistan)
Drafting Committee
Chairman: Mr. J. A. Correa (Ecuador)
Credentials Committee
Chairman: Mr. M. Wershof (Canada)
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9. The Secretary-General of the United Nations was represented by Mr. C. A. Stavropoulos,
the Legal Counsel. Mr. Yuen-li Liang, Director of the Codification Division of the
Office of Legal Affairs of the United Nations, was appointed Executive Secretary.
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10. The General Assembly, by its resolution convening the Conference, referred to the
Conference the report of the International Law Commission covering the work of its
eighth session as a basis for consideration of the various problems involved in the
development and codification of the law of the sea; the General Assembly also referred
to the Conference the verbatim records of the relevant debates in the General Assembly,
for consideration by the Conference in conjunction with the Commission's report.
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11. The Conference also had before it the comments by Governments on the articles concerning
the law of the sea prepared by the International Law Commission, the memorandum submitted
by the preliminary Conference of Land-locked States held in Geneva from 10 to 14 February
1958, and preparatory documentation prepared by the Secretariat of the United Nations,
by certain specialized agencies and by independent experts invited by the Secretariat
to assist in the preparation of this documentation.
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12. On the basis of the deliberations, as recorded in the summary records and reports
of the committees and in the records of the plenary meetings, the Conference prepared
and opened for signature the following Conventions (annexes I to IV):
Convention on the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone (adopted on 27 April 1958,
on the report of the First Committee);
Convention on the High Seas (adopted on 27 April 1958, on the report of the Second Committee);
Convention on Fishing and Conservation of the Living Resources of the High Seas (adopted on 26 April 1958, on the report of the Third Committee);
Convention on the Continental Shelf (adopted on 26 April 1958, on the report of the Fourth Committee).
The Conference also adopted the following Protocol (annex V):
Optional Protocol of Signature concerning the compulsory settlement of disputes (adopted by the Conference on 26 April 1958).
La Conférence a également adopté le protocole ci-après (annexe V):
In addition, the Conference adopted the following resolutions (annex VI):
Nuclear tests on the high seas (resolution adopted on 27 April 1958, on the report
of the Second Committee, in connexion with article 2 of the Convention on the High
Seas);
Pollution of the high seas by radio-active materials (resolution adopted on 27 April
1958, on the report of the Second Committee, relating to article 25 of the Convention
on the High Seas);
International fishery conservation conventions (resolution adopted on 25 April 1958,
on the report of the Third Committee);
Co-operation in conservation measures (resolution adopted on 25 April 1958, on the
report of the Third Committee);
Humane killing of marine life (resolution adopted on 25 April 1958, on the report
of the Third Commitee);
Special situations relating to coastal fisheries (resolution adopted on 26 April 1958,
on the report of the Third Committee);
Regime of historic waters (resolution adopted on 27 April 1958, on the report of the
First Committee);
Convening of a second United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea (resolution
adopted by the Conference on 27 April 1958);
Tribute to the International Law Commission (resolution adopted by the Conference
on 27 April 1958).