Chapter 12
UNCLOS Dispute Settlement
Mechanism: Japan’s Experience
and Contribution
Dai Tamada
12.1 Introduction
12.1.1 Japan’s Stance Towards UNCLOS
Japan ratified the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)
in 1996 and, since then, has actively contributed to a variety of activities within
UNCLOS. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan (MOFA) makes this clear when
it stated that:
For Japan, a maritime nation surrounded by sea, the international law of the sea based
primarily on the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is indispensable for securing its maritime rights and interests as well as for undertaking maritime
activities smoothly. Japan has been actively promoting the rule of law at sea, including by
contributing to the three organs established by UNCLOS, such as the International Tribunal
for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf
(CLCS) and the International Seabed Authority (ISA). 1
Indeed, Japan’s contribution to UNCLOS is not limited to the work of the
UNCLOS dispute settlement mechanism (UNCLOS-DSM), but expands to other
fora such as the CLCS and the ISA.
2
1 Japan, MOFA, ‘Law of the Sea’ (March 23, 2016), available at https://www.mofa.go.jp/ila/ocn/
page22e_000665.html.
2 In detail, the contribution to the Trust Fund for the purpose of defraying the costs of participation
of the members of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf from developing States
in the meetings of the Commission and the contribution to the Voluntary Trust Fund of the ISA.
Ibid.
D. Tamada (B)
Kobe University, Kobe, Japan
e-mail: tamada@port.kobe-u.ac.jp
© Kobe University 2021
D. Tamada and K. Zou (eds.), Implementation of the United Nations Convention
on the Law of the Sea, Kobe University Monograph Series in Social Science Research,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-33-6954-2_12
221
UNCLOS Dispute Settlement
Mechanism: Japan’s Experience
and Contribution
Dai Tamada
12.1 Introduction
12.1.1 Japan’s Stance Towards UNCLOS
Japan ratified the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)
in 1996 and, since then, has actively contributed to a variety of activities within
UNCLOS. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan (MOFA) makes this clear when
it stated that:
For Japan, a maritime nation surrounded by sea, the international law of the sea based
primarily on the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is indispensable for securing its maritime rights and interests as well as for undertaking maritime
activities smoothly. Japan has been actively promoting the rule of law at sea, including by
contributing to the three organs established by UNCLOS, such as the International Tribunal
for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf
(CLCS) and the International Seabed Authority (ISA). 1
Indeed, Japan’s contribution to UNCLOS is not limited to the work of the
UNCLOS dispute settlement mechanism (UNCLOS-DSM), but expands to other
fora such as the CLCS and the ISA.
2
1 Japan, MOFA, ‘Law of the Sea’ (March 23, 2016), available at https://www.mofa.go.jp/ila/ocn/
page22e_000665.html.
2 In detail, the contribution to the Trust Fund for the purpose of defraying the costs of participation
of the members of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf from developing States
in the meetings of the Commission and the contribution to the Voluntary Trust Fund of the ISA.
Ibid.
D. Tamada (B)
Kobe University, Kobe, Japan
e-mail: tamada@port.kobe-u.ac.jp
© Kobe University 2021
D. Tamada and K. Zou (eds.), Implementation of the United Nations Convention
on the Law of the Sea, Kobe University Monograph Series in Social Science Research,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-33-6954-2_12
221