(VOVWORLD) - Cambodia on Friday unanimously approved a draft law to ratify the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), marking a historic turning point in fine-tuning the legal framework and Cambodia's stronger position in international maritime forums.
 Cambodia unanimously approves a draft law to ratify the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea |
Cambodia signed UNCLOS on July 1, 1983. After more than four decades, this draft law will soon be submitted to the Senate for consideration and then to the King for ratification before being officially submitted to the United Nations.
Geopolitics experts say full membership in the “Constitution for the Oceans” would bring Cambodia three core benefits. Firstly, it will provide a comprehensive legal framework for managing and protecting sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction at sea in accordance with international standards. Secondly, it will expand opportunities for equal cooperation with countries in the region and the world in resolving disputes and managing marine resources. Thirdly, Cambodia will officially have the right to vote in the election of international seabed management bodies and judges at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS).
The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea was signed on December 10, 1982, and entered into force on November 16, 1994. On June 23, 1994, the Vietnamese National Assembly passed a resolution ratifying this important legal document. To date, more than 170 countries out of the 193 UN member states have ratified the Convention.