Does the Convention permit decisions about deep seabed mining to be made by developing countries over the objection of the United States through the International Seabed Authority?
A. No, the International Seabed Authority’s (ISA) rules do not permit the ISA to be controlled by the Developing World. This was the subject of the one part of the Convention that the Reagan Administration asked to be renegotiated in 1983. The problem was resolved through the renegotiation of the deep seabed mining regime concluded in 1994. As revised, the ISA’s rules give the United States the ability to prevent decisions contrary to U.S. interests. If the United States were party to the Convention, the ISA’s voting rules would allow the United States to veto the adoption of any rules, regulations, and procedures relating to the deep seabed mining regime, decisions having financial or budgetary implications, decisions relating to distribution of ISA revenues, and decisions on proposed amendments to the regime. (Convention Article 161(8)(d); Section 3(7) of the Annex to the 1994 Agreement Implementing the Convention’s deep seabed mining provisions). The United States can veto other dec
Related Questions
- Does the Convention permit decisions about deep seabed mining to be made by developing countries over the objection of the United States through the International Seabed Authority?
- Under the Convention, will U.S. companies have the opportunity to acquire rights to conduct deep seabed mining?
- Does the Convention provide for production controls on mining of minerals from the deep seabed?
