2 Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone
Kevin Aquilina
From: The IMLI Manual on International Maritime Law: Volume I: The Law of the Sea
Edited By: David J Attard, Malgosia Fitzmaurice, Norman A Martínez Gutiérrez
- Subject(s):
- Territorial sea — Baselines — Innocent passage — Exclusive economic zone — Coastal states — Nationality of ships — Warfare, sea — Flag state — Delimitation — State practice — Sovereignty — UNCLOS (UN Convention on the Law of the Sea) — Treaties, interpretation
The territorial sea and the contiguous zone are two maritime zones which overlap with each other. They are both measured from the same baselines and in both maritime zones the coastal State exercises an element of sovereignty or control. The contiguous zone is an extension of the coastal State’s powers over the territorial sea because when the coastal State enforces its customs, fiscal, immigration, or sanitary laws or regulations, it does so with regard to infringements of these laws carried out within the coastal State’s territory or territorial sea. Both...
