(a) The maritime issues herein discussed illustrate the vitality of the Law of the Sea.
For a long time, it was wrongly believed that with the entry into force of the
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), research and
debate on the issue, so intense during the years of the Third United Nations
Conference on the Law of the Sea, were old-fashioned and obsolete, the codification having provided all the necessary answers. If we go through recent
books, articles and proceedings on the Law of the Sea, we can see that the
younger generations of European internationalists seem to have long forgotten
the subject. They appear to have left it to their older Professors, preferring more
fashionable themes, such as environmental law, human rights and international
criminal law. On the contrary, practice has shown the inaccuracy of the assumptions underlying this behavior and it is therefore appropriate that younger
generations of researchers deal with and study this area of International Law.
It is a comforting sign of a change in attitude that the editors have been able to
obtain quality contributions to this volume from so many young researchers.
(b) There is one element that can be considered common to many current issues of
the Law of the Sea: the rapid aging of international legal instruments available.
First of all, we still have the habit of talking about UNCLOS as the “new Law of
the Sea”, even though it was opened for signature nearly 40 years ago, while
during this same period the structure and the very composition of the international community have undergone profound changes following phenomena that
have marked an era: the fall of the Berlin Wall, the existence of new technological instruments in what is called “globalization”, the birth of the World Trade
Organization, an increased sensitivity to the demands of the individual vis-à-vis
States and multinational companies, the events of 11 September 2001, disasters
such as Chernobyl or Fukushima, the so called “Arab Spring” and the consequent migration issues. All these occurrences necessarily determined the birth
and development of a series of new and unforeseen problems which must be
addressed by legal instruments forged in and for a different historical-political
context. It is worth noting, for example, that biological diversity, and therefore
the need for its protection, is nearly absent in UNCLOS, which takes into
consideration the “conservation of biological resources” for the sole purpose
of ensuring its optimal use based on the criterion of maximum sustainable
exploitation (maximum sustainable yield—UNCLOS, Arts 61 and 62). The
notion of biodiversity has been included in the international legal system since
the last decade of the twentieth century, with the adoption of the UN Convention
on Biological Diversity (UN, 1992).
(c) A free and open maritime order based on the rule of law is a cornerstone for the
stability and prosperity of the international community. It is therefore crucially
important that freedom of navigation, connectivity among regions and cooperation on capacity building is ensured among all coastal States. The different
nature of criminal activities at sea calls for a diversified response and a comprehensive analysis of all its aspects. The continued instability in several areas of
the Middle East, Africa and Asia has resulted in an unprecedented displacement
of people on a global level and an increased influx of migrants and refugees in
2
G. Cataldi
For a long time, it was wrongly believed that with the entry into force of the
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), research and
debate on the issue, so intense during the years of the Third United Nations
Conference on the Law of the Sea, were old-fashioned and obsolete, the codification having provided all the necessary answers. If we go through recent
books, articles and proceedings on the Law of the Sea, we can see that the
younger generations of European internationalists seem to have long forgotten
the subject. They appear to have left it to their older Professors, preferring more
fashionable themes, such as environmental law, human rights and international
criminal law. On the contrary, practice has shown the inaccuracy of the assumptions underlying this behavior and it is therefore appropriate that younger
generations of researchers deal with and study this area of International Law.
It is a comforting sign of a change in attitude that the editors have been able to
obtain quality contributions to this volume from so many young researchers.
(b) There is one element that can be considered common to many current issues of
the Law of the Sea: the rapid aging of international legal instruments available.
First of all, we still have the habit of talking about UNCLOS as the “new Law of
the Sea”, even though it was opened for signature nearly 40 years ago, while
during this same period the structure and the very composition of the international community have undergone profound changes following phenomena that
have marked an era: the fall of the Berlin Wall, the existence of new technological instruments in what is called “globalization”, the birth of the World Trade
Organization, an increased sensitivity to the demands of the individual vis-à-vis
States and multinational companies, the events of 11 September 2001, disasters
such as Chernobyl or Fukushima, the so called “Arab Spring” and the consequent migration issues. All these occurrences necessarily determined the birth
and development of a series of new and unforeseen problems which must be
addressed by legal instruments forged in and for a different historical-political
context. It is worth noting, for example, that biological diversity, and therefore
the need for its protection, is nearly absent in UNCLOS, which takes into
consideration the “conservation of biological resources” for the sole purpose
of ensuring its optimal use based on the criterion of maximum sustainable
exploitation (maximum sustainable yield—UNCLOS, Arts 61 and 62). The
notion of biodiversity has been included in the international legal system since
the last decade of the twentieth century, with the adoption of the UN Convention
on Biological Diversity (UN, 1992).
(c) A free and open maritime order based on the rule of law is a cornerstone for the
stability and prosperity of the international community. It is therefore crucially
important that freedom of navigation, connectivity among regions and cooperation on capacity building is ensured among all coastal States. The different
nature of criminal activities at sea calls for a diversified response and a comprehensive analysis of all its aspects. The continued instability in several areas of
the Middle East, Africa and Asia has resulted in an unprecedented displacement
of people on a global level and an increased influx of migrants and refugees in
2
G. Cataldi