THIRD CONFERENCE ON THE LAW OF THE SEA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82S00697R000400010009-6
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 6
• Document Creation Date: December 12, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 17, 2002
• Sequence Number: 9
• Publication Date: May 15, 1975
• Content Type: NOTES

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UNITED NATIONS
THIRD CONFERENCE
ON THE LAW OF THE SEA
FIRST COMMITTEE
Distr.
LIMITED
A/CONF.62/C.l/L.15
15 May 1975
Original: ENGLISH
STATEI?1TJ2 ON TIDE WORK OF THE FIRST COMMITTEE
Prepared by the Rappporteur
I. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE COM,IITT3
1. The First Committee was one of the. three committees of the whole established at
the first session of the Conference to deal with the subjects covered by the three
Sub-Committees of the Committee.on the Peaceful Uses of the Sea-bed and the Ocean Floor
beyond the Limits of National Jurisdiction (the Sea-bed. Committee)...
Chairman Mr. P.B. Ingo -- United ,Republic of Cameroon
Vice-Chairmen Brazil Mr. S.M. Thompson Flores
Germain Democratic Republic Mr. H. Wiinsche
Japan. - 11r. T. Iguchi
Rapporteur Mr. J.S. Bailey -- Australia.]
II. MANDATE OF TEE COMMITTEE
2. The mandate of the Committee consists of examining the subjects and issues allocated
to it by the Conference at its fifteenth meeting on 21 June 1974.
The-list.'-of items allocated to the Committee is contained. in..,paraggraph 2 of.
the Statement of Activities of the First Committee at the second. session of the
Conference (A/CON1F.62/L.8/Rev.l, Annex i) .
l/ See paragraph 8 below.
GE.75-65216
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III. DOCUMENTS BEFORE THE COMMITTEE
3. The First Committee had before it all the documentation from Sub-Committee 1 of the
Sea-bed Committee l/ including in particular the texts illustrating the areas of
agreement and disagreement in items 1 and 2 of the Sub-Committee's programme of work./
4.. The First Committee also had before it the documents submitted to it during the
second session of the Conference and all other documents that were relevant to the
mandate of the Com::"'ee. / Tr.e document;; submitted to the Committee during the
third session of the Conference are listed in Appendix I.
5. During the third session of the Conference in Geneva'from 17 March 1975 to
9 May 1975 the First Committee worked through formal meetings and through its
Working Group.
6. At its 18th meeting on 19 March 1975 the Committee accepted a proposal of the
Chairman that the Working Group set up at Caracas to pursue negotiations on Articles 1-21
relating to principles of the international regime J, particularly on Article 9
thereof, and on the subject of conditions of exploration and exploitation, should begin
work as soon as possible.
7'. At its 19th meeting on 26 March 1975, the Chairman made a statement proposing that
at the current session there should be no further general statements of principle or of
national positions and that, as the time?had come for negotiations, the work of the
Committee and its Working Group should be reduced in favour of work in small iixr,forraalin-
negotiating groups.
8. At the same meeting, the Chairman informed the Committee that on account of
Government duties at home its Rapporteur Mr. H.C. Mott was unable to continue his
functions as Rapporteur and. that the Western European and Others Group had put forward
the candidacy of Mr. J.S. Bailey to replace him. The Committee approved that Group's
recommendation. All other officers.. of the Committee remained unchanged.
V By paragraph.6 of resolution 3067 (XXVIII), the General Assembly referred to
the Conference the reports of the Sea-bed Committee and all other relevant documentation
of the General Assembly and that Committee.
Official Records of the General Assembly, Twwrenty-sixth Session, Supplement
No. 21 (A/8421, p.8).
J Documents presented in the Committee during the second session of the
Conference are listed in Appendix 1 of Document Aj/CONF 62/L.8/Rev. 1, Annex 1.
J Contained in document A/CONF 62/C.1/L.3/Rev. 1.
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9. At its 20th meeting on 25 April 1975 and its 21st and 22nd meetings on
28 April 1975, the Committee discussed the structure, powers and functions of the
international machinery. Twenty-nine-statements were made by representatives during
these meetings.
10. At its 23rd meeting on 7 May 1975 the Chairman of the Committee made a O Matt
statement. Also during this meeting the Special Representative of the
Secretary-General replied. to a request made to the Secretariat by the representative of
Singapore at the 20th meeting for certain technical information on nodule mining.
11. An index to the summary records of the Committee including a list of those who
spoke in the discussions is contained in Appendix II.
V. WORK OF. P1 WORKING GROUP
12. The Working Group under the chairmanship of Mr. C.V. Pinto of Sri Lanka, pursued
its. negotiations on the basic conditions of exploration and exploitation with the aid
of an anonymous paper submitted to the Working Group.
13. At the 19th and 20th meetings of the Committee respectively the Chairman of the
Working Group gave a progress report on the work done relating to its mandate. At
the 23rd meeting he presented a final report. Each report contained personal views
and was not binding on any delegation. All statements appear in the records of the
meetings.
14. Following a request by the Conference at its 54th meeting on 18 April 1.975, the
Chairman of the Committee prepared a single-negotiating text covering the main issues
within the mandate of the First Committee. On ... May 1975 he submitted that text
to the Conference under the Symbol A/CONF.62/.......
VII. FUTURE WORK OF THE COMMITTEE
15. The First Committee made useful progress at this session of the Conference towards
completion of the mandate assigned to it by the Conference. The process of future
negotiation in the Committee will be facilitated. by the single negotiating text
presented to the Conference by the Chairman of the Committee.
16. The Rapporteur, at the 23rd meeting on 7 May 1975 presented this statement to the
Committee.
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A CONF'.62/C.l/L.15
Annex I
Annex I
List of documents submitted to the First Committee
Draft articles considered by the Committee
at its informal meetings (Articles 1-21)
Explanatory note [dated 18 March 1975]
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics: working
document on the basic provisions of the rules and.
conditions governing the evaluation and exploitation
of the mineral resources of the Sea-bed
beyond the limits of the continental shelf
- provisions which should form an integral part
of the Law of the Sea Convention
[dated 21 March 1975]
Czechoslovakia - System of revenue distribution
[dated 28 April 19751
Czechoslovakia - Representation in the Council
and other organs of the International Sea-bed
Authority [dated 30 April 1975]
Statement on the work of the First Committee
prepared by the Rapporteur [dated 7 May 1975]
A/CONF.62/C.l/L.3/Rev.l
A/COPlF.62/C.1/L.12
and Corr.1 (E/A/C/F/R)
/
Carr. 2 (_ only)
Corr-.3 A/C F S)
Corr.4.
A/CONF.62/C.l/L.13
and Corr.1 (A/
Corr.2 (F only)
A/CONF.62/0.1/L. 14
A/CONF.62/C.l/L.15
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Annex II
held
Index to the summary records of the First Committee Meetin
18th meeting:
May 1975 (A/C01TF.62/C.l/SR.18-2
Organization.. o1 work.
Statements by the Acting Chairman and the Chairman of the Working Group.
19th meetLnE:
1. Tribute to the memory of His Late Majesty, King Faisal of Saudi Arabia:. statements
by the Chairman and Saudi Arabia.
2. Officers of the Committee: Mr. Charles Mott (Australia), Rapporteur informed the
Committee of his Withdrawal from the post of Rapporteur and of the agreement of the
Group of Western European and Other States to replace him by Mr. John Bailey (Australia).
Following a statement by the Chairman the Committee decided to elect Mr. Bailey as
Rapporteur.
3. Document A/CONF.62/C.1/L.12: Statement by the USSR introducing the above document:
4. Interim Report by the Chairman of the Working Group: The Chairman of the
Working Group made an interim report.
5. Sea-bed exploitation: Statements by Peru, Australia, Cuba and..the United States.
20th meeting:
1. Interim report by the Chairman. of the Working Group: The Chairman of the
Working Group made an interim report.
Statements by Peru and the United States.
Statements by Liberia and Poland.
2. Request for information on development of sea-bed resources: Singapore requested
the Secretariat to give information of an economic and technical nature concerning
sea-bed resources development.
3. International machinery; structure, functions and powers: The Chairman made an
introductory statement. Statements by Peru, Zambia, Liberia, Chile, Guatemala and
Morocco.
The representative of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development
made a statement.
21st meeting,':
International machinery; structure, functions and powers: Statements by Argentina,
Mexico, Trinidad and Tobago, the United. States, Kenya, Switzerland., Zaire, Mauritania,
Mongolia, Greece, Poland,, Israel, Yugoslavia, the German:.Domocrati.o Republic, France,
Malta and Romania.
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Annex II
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22nd meeting:
1. International machineryrstructure, functions._and.powers: Statements by
Afghanistan, -Egypt, Germany, Fe'deral Republic of, Bulgaria, China, Madagascar and
Australia.
2. Document A/CONF.62/C.1/L.13: Czechoslovakia, on behalf of Land-locked and
Geographically Disar jantaged States, introdi..ced the above doculent.
3. Request for information-on development'of sea-bed resources: Peru raised a
question to which the Committee Secretary replied.
23rd meetin?:.:
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