THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SOVEREIGN IMMUNITY OF WARSHIPS TO UNMANNED UNDERWATER VEHICLES (UUV) UNDER LAW OF THE SEA
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Published:
Aug 4, 2022
Keywords:
Law of the Sea, Sovereign Immunity of Warships, Warship, Underwater Unmanned Vehicles (UUV)
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Abstract
Along with the times, there have been advances in marine technology which includes Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUV). Some countries have started using UUVs for both commercial and military marine activities since UUVs have several advantages that ordinary ships do not have. However, the development and application of UUVs for marine purposes raises numerous problems since there isn’t clear regulation regarding UUV. Current legal instruments only explain the meaning of ship without classifying the type of ship itself. It raises a problem since it led to different interpretations between countries and the determination of legal rules for UUV. One incident related to UUV technology can be seen from the Bowditch incident where from this incident there are differences in interpretation on the classification of UUV between America and Tiongkok. Other incidents can also be seen from the entry of foreign UUVs into Indonesia waters for research purposes. From several incidents, there are main issues to the classification of UUVs which are connected to warships and their military activities. The classification of UUVs as merchant ships or warships is necessary considering that the rights of immunity owned by warships will affect the legal status of UUVs and their activities. Regulations that are still ambiguous will affect the Coastal State’s actions if there are foreign UUVs entering their sea areas, especially if the UUVs are used for military activities. Therefore, it is necessary to have clear regulations regarding UUVs including their classification and determine marine activities that allowed for the use of UUVs.
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Felencia, N. C., Siswandi, R. A. G. C., & Mulyana, I. (2022). THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SOVEREIGN IMMUNITY OF WARSHIPS TO UNMANNED UNDERWATER VEHICLES (UUV) UNDER LAW OF THE SEA. Padjadjaran Journal of International Law, 6(1), 76-95. https://doi.org/10.23920/pjil.v6i1.954
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
References
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Cases
Memorial of the Government of the Republic of Finland, Case Concerning Passage Through the Great Belt (Finland v. Denmark), [1992] I.C.J. Rep.
Stewart v. Dutra Construction Company, United States Reports, Vol. 543 (2004).
Guan, Kwa Chong and John Kristen Skogan. Maritime Security in Southeast Asia, 2007, Routledge.
Churchill, R. R. and A. V. Lowe. The Law of the Sea, Manchester University Press, 1999.
Cutler, Deborah W and Thomas J. Cutler. Dictionary of Naval Terms (6th ed.), 2005, Naval Institute Press.
Brown, E. D. and R. R. Churchill. The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea: Impact and Implementation (eds.), 1987, Law of the Sea Institute.
J. A., Roach and Smith R.W. Excessive Maritime Claims, International Law Studies, Vol. 66, 1994, Naval War College.
Kwiatkowska, B. The 200 Mile Exclusive Economic Zone, 1989, Nijhoff Publishers.
Evans, Malcolm and S. Galani. Maritime Security and the Law of the Sea: Help or Hindrance?, 2020, Edward Elgar Publishing.
Nordquist, Myron. Freedom of Seas, Passage Rights and the 1982 Law of the Sea Convention, 2009, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers.
Bernhardt, R. Encyclopedia of Public International Law, 1997, Elsevier Science Publisher.
Thomas, A. R. and James C. Duncan. Annotated Supplement to the Commander’s Handbook on the Law of Naval Operations, 1999, Naval War College.
Journal
Allen, Craig H. “Determining the Legal Status of Unmanned Maritime Vehicles: Formalism vs Functionalism” Journal of Maritime Law & Commerce, Vol. 49 (4), 2018.
Bateman, Sam. “Hydrographic Surveying in EEZ: Differences and Overlaps with Marine Scientific Research”, Marine Policy, Vol. 29, 2005.
Bork, Katharina, (et. al.) “The Legal Regulation of Floats and Gliders—In Quest of a New Regime?”, Ocean Development & International Law, Vol. 39, 2008.
Chang, Yen-Chiang, (et. al.) “The International Legal Status of the Unmanned Maritime Vehicles”, Marine Policy, Vol. 113, 2020.
Daum, Oliver. ‘The Implications of International Law on Unmanned Naval Craft’, Journal of Maritime Law and Commerce, Vol. 49 (1), 2018.
Dimri, B. M. “The Arrest of Argentine Warship ‘ARA Libertad’: Revisiting International Law Governing Warships, Sovereign Immunity, and Naval Diplomatic Roles”, Journal of Defence Studies, Vol. 7, 2013.
Geng, Jing. “The Legality of Foreign Military Activities in the Exclusive Economic Zone Under UNCLOS”, Utrecht Journal of International and European Law, Vol. 28, 2012.
Heo, Jinyeon, (et. al.) “Technology Development of Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUVs)”, Journal of Computer and Communications, Vol. 5, 2017.
Hofmann, Tobias, (et. al.) “The Operation of Gliders Under the International Law of the Sea”, Ocean Development & International Law, 2015.
Hooydonk, Eric Van. “The Law of Unmanned Merchant Shipping-An Exploration”, Journal of International Maritime Law, Vol. 20, 2014.
Joshi, Hrishikesh. “The Advent of Unmanned Underwater Vehicles and the Inadequacy of the Law of Man”, International Journal of Legal Developments and Allied Issues, Vol. 4, 2018.
Klein, Natalie, (et. al.) “Maritime Autonomous Vehicles: New Frontiers in the Law of the Sea”, International and Comparative Law Quarterly, Vol. 69, 2020.
Klein, Natalie. “Maritime Autonomous Vehicles within the International Law Framework to Enhance Maritime Security”, International Law Studies, Vol. 95, 2019.
Mangapul, Joy Henri, (et. al.) “Sovereign Immunity of Non-Commercial Government Vessels and Due Regard: China Coast Guard In the Natunas”, Indonesian Journal of International Law, Vol. 18 No. 2.
McKenzie, Simon. “When Is a Ship a Ship? Use by State Armed Forces of Un-crewed Maritime Vehicles and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea”, Law and the Future of War Research Paper, No. 3, 2020.
Oxman, Bernard H. “The Regime of Warships Under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea”, Virginia Journal of International Law, Vol. 24, No. 4, 1984.
Schmitt, Michael N. and David S. Goddard, “International Law and the Military Use of Unmanned Maritime Systems”, International Review of the Red Cross, Vol. 98, No. 2, 2016.
Vallejo, D. “Electric Currents: Programming Legal Status into Autonomous Unmanned Maritime Vehicles”, Case Western Reserve Journal of International Law, Vol. 47, No. 1, 2015.
Veal, Robert and Henrik Ringbom. “Unmanned Ships and The International Regulatory Framework”, Journal of International Maritime Law, Vol. 23 (2), 2017.
Wilson, Brian. “An Avoidable Maritime Conflict: Disputes Regarding Military Activities in the Exclusive Economic Zone”, Journal of Maritime Law & Commerce, Vol. 41, No. 3, 2010.
Treaties
Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Maritime Navigation, March 10, 1988, (entered into force March 1, 1992) [SUA Convention 1988], online: https://treaties.un.org/doc/db/terrorism/conv8-english.pdf.
Convention on the Law of the Sea, Dec. 10, 1982, 1833 U.N.T.S. 397. (entered into force Nov. 1, 1994) [UNCLOS 1982]
Convention on the International Regulation for Preventing Collisions at Sea, Oct. 20, 1972 (entered into force July 15, 1977), online: https://www.imo.org/en/About/Conventions/Pages/COLREG.aspx.
Charter of the United Nations, Oct. 24, 1945, 1 U.N.T.S. XVI (entered into force 24 Oct 1945) [UN Charter].
International Law Commission, Articles on State Responsibility for Internationally Wrongful Acts, UN Doc. A/RES/56/83, 2001.
United Nations Convention on Conditions for Registration of Ships, Feb. 7, 1986 [UNCCRS 1986], online: https://unctad.org/system/files/official-document/tdrsconf23_en.pdf.
Legal Document
San Remo Manual on International law Applicable to Armed Conflicts at Sea, International Review of the Red Cross, No. 309 (1995), rule 13, online: https://www.icrc.org/en/doc/resources/documents/article/other/57jmsu.htm.
United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR), “The Weaponisation of Increasingly Autonomous Technologies in the Maritime Environment Testing the Waters”, 2015, p.3, https://unidir.org/publication/weaponization-increasingly-autonomous-technologiesmaritime-environment-testing-waters.
European Defence Agency, ‘Best Practice Guide for Unmanned Maritime Systems Handling, Operations, Design and Regulations (Working Paper), 2014.
International Maritime Organization (IMO), Outcome of the Regulatory Scoping Exercise For The Use of Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS), MSC.1/Circ.1638, June 2021.
Veal, Robert, (et. al.) “Liability for operations in Unmanned Maritime Vehicles with Differing Levels of Autonomy”, Final Report, 14.CAT.OP.065, University of Southampton, 2016.
Website
BBC News Indonesia, “Seaglider tiga kali ditemukan di perairan Indonesia dalam dua tahun terakhir ‘bukti intrusi kedaulatan dan ketiadaan alat deteksi’”, BBC News Indonesia, 9 January 2021, https://www.bbc.com/indonesia/indonesia-55559222, accessed 24th March 2021.
CNN Indonesia, “Media Asing Soroti Seaglider di Laut RI Diduga Milik China”. CNN Indonesia, 5 January 2021, https://www.cnnindonesia.com/internasional/20210105101031-106-589547/media-asing-soroti-seaglider-di-laut-ri-diduga-milik-china, accessed 24th March 2021.
Cronk, Terri Moon. “Chinese Seize U.S. Navy Underwater Drone in South China Sea” U.S. Department of Defense, 16 December 2016, https://www.defense.gov/Explore/News/Article/Article/1032823/chinese-seize-us-navyunderwater-drone-in-south-china-sea/, accessed 23rd March 2021.
Fravel, Taylor. “The Implications of China’s Seizure of a US Navy Drone”, Maritime Awareness Project Analysis, 21 Desember 2016, https://www.nbr.org/publication/theimplications-of-chinas-seizure-of-a-u-s-navy-drone/, accessed 12th January 2022.
International Hydrographic Organization, “Importance of Hydrography”, https://iho.int/en/importance-of-hydrography, accessed on 18 May 2022.
Kraska, James and Raul “Pete” Pedrozo, “China’s Capture of U.S. Underwater Drone Violates Law of the Sea”, Lawfare, 16 December 2016, https://www.lawfareblog.com/chinas-capture-us-underwater-drone-violates-law-sea, accessed 15th April 2022.
Larter, David B. “5 things you should know about the US Navy’s plans for autonomous missile boats”, Defense News, Jan 14, 2020. https://www.defensenews.com/digital-show-dailies/surface-navyassociation/2020/01/13/heres-5-things-you-should-know-about-the-us-navys-plans-forbig-autonomous-missile-boats/, accessed 12th April 2022.
Norris, Andrew, “Legal Issues Relating to Unmanned Maritime Systems Monograph”, International Law Department, US Naval War College, 2013, p. 23. https://www.iqpc.com/media/1002182/50661.pdf
Ryan, Missy and Dan Lamothe, “Pentagon: Chinese Naval Ship Seized An Unmanned US Underwater Vehicles in South China Sea”. Washington Post, 17 December 2016. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2016/12/16/defense-officialchinese-naval-ship-seized-an-unmanned-u-s-ocean-glider/, accessed 20th May 2020.
Sutton, H. I. “Chinese Submarine Drone Discovered Near Gateway To Indian Ocean”, Naval News, 29 December 2020, https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2020/12/chinese-submarine-drone-discoverednear-gateway-to-indian-ocean/, accessed 7th February 2022.
U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command, “Oceanographic Survey Ships”, https://www.msc.usff.navy.mil/Ships/Ship-Inventory/Oceanographic-Survey-Ship/, accessed 24th April 2022.
Cases
Memorial of the Government of the Republic of Finland, Case Concerning Passage Through the Great Belt (Finland v. Denmark), [1992] I.C.J. Rep.
Stewart v. Dutra Construction Company, United States Reports, Vol. 543 (2004).