The Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea 



In 1970 the U.N. General Assembly scheduled a comprehensive 

 conference on the Law of the Sea to begin in 1973. Following a short 

 organizing session in December 1973, the first substantive session of 

 the Law of the Sea conference was l;eld in Caracas, Venezuela, from 

 June 20 to August 29, 1974. With the development of offshore oil, the 

 immiment exploitation of manganese nodules, the use of 300,000-ton 

 tankers, and fishing fleets capable of exploiting living marine 

 resources to extinction, increasing demands are being placed upon 

 ocean resources. Therefore, the necessity arises for a multinational 

 treaty to reconcile the traditional use of the oceans with these new 

 demands. Unfortunately, a comprehensive treaty was not achieved. 



Nevertheless, the session at Caracas accomplished a great deal: it 

 formulated a systematic framework necessary to reach an ac- 

 comodation. The conference papers clarify what the structure and 

 general content of the Law of the Sea Treaty is likely to be when it is 

 finally agreed upon. 



The work of the session was divided among three committees. 

 Committee I dealt with the seabed beyond the limits of national 

 jurisdiction; Committee II dealt with the traditional law of the sea 

 issues; and Committee III dealt with the problems of marine 

 pollution and marine scientific research. 



SEABED 



Almost the entire range of issues under Committee I's mandate had 

 been reflected in alternative treaty articles prepared by the old 

 Seabed Committee. The exception was the preparation of treaty 

 articles on rules and regulations for deep seabed mining; a critical 

 element of the U.S. deep-seabed position. 



During the Caracas session, the newly emerging nations agreed on 

 a single text for basic conditions of exploitation, which would permit 

 the International Seabed Authority to enter into a variety of legal 

 arrangements, provided it maintained "direct and effective control at 

 all times." Draft rules and regulations were added by the United 

 States, Japan, and eight European countries. 



TRADITIONAL ISSUES 



The traditional law of the sea issues are within the purview of 

 Committee II. The Committee summarized the work of 13 working 

 papers into a single working paper containing 243 provisions 

 divided into 13 parts. It is the opinion of the chairman that this 

 document will serve as a basis for future work toward final 

 agreement. The 13 parts are covered in the following paragraphs. 



Territorial Sea — A variety of articles were introduced that for the 



