established. Suggested priorities included study of the geology 

 and geophysics of the ocean floor, improvement of data ex- 

 change, and prevention of pollution. The International Decade 

 proposal was widely supported. 



Economic and Technical Aspects. This Working Group dis- 

 cussed and reported on the following items: 



— extent and distribution of mineral resources 



— present and foreseeable development of technology 



— profitability and soundness of investments 



— possible economic implications on world market and 



prices 

 — possible repercussions of exploitation on other uses 



of the sea 

 — possibility of benefiting mankind as a whole 

 — prospects for international cooperation 



They concluded that there were probably substantial re- 

 sources beyond the continental shelf and expressed cautious 

 optimism with respect to future technological achievements. 

 Although they favored international cooperation, they conclud- 

 ed that more detailed study of possible regimes and other types 

 of cooperation would be necessary before making any decisions. 



Legal Aspects. A wide range of legal problems were inves- 

 tigated by this group: 



— legal status of the sea-bed 



— reservation for peaceful purposes 



— use of resource in the interests of mankind 



— freedom of scientific research and exploration 



— exercise of freedoms of the high seas 



— pollution and other hazards 



— definition of the sea-bed 



— moratorium or freezing of national claims 



There was no consensus reached on most of these issues. 

 However, it was generally felt that existing international law 

 is inadequate and should be seriously studied. Although there 

 was agreement that exploration should be in the interests of 

 mankind, it was not clear how this might be accomplished. 



Other Aspects. Extremely fundamental differences in 

 opinion and perspective were evident in discussions of the 

 military aspects of the sea-bed. It was not possible to differ- 

 entiate between peaceful and non-military uses, to determine 

 the role which the Eighteen-Nation Disarmament Committee 

 (ENDC) should play, or to decide on the limits of the area of 

 the ocean or ocean floor which the U. N. might reasonably con- 

 sider in this context. 



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