[Solved] With reference to the United Nations Convention on the Law of Sea, consider the following statements: A coastal state has the right to establish the breadth of its territorial sea up to a limit not exceeding 12 nautical miles, measured from baseline determined in accordance with the convention. Ships of all states, whether coastal or land- locked, enjoy the right of innocent passage through the territorial sea. The Exclusive Economic Zone shall not extend beyond 200 nautical miles from the baseline from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured. Which of the statements given above are correct?

Q85) With reference to the United Nations Convention on the Law of Sea, consider the following statements:

A coastal state has the right to establish the breadth of its territorial sea up to a limit not exceeding 12 nautical miles, measured from baseline determined in accordance with the convention.
Ships of all states, whether coastal or land- locked, enjoy the right of innocent passage through the territorial sea.
The Exclusive Economic Zone shall not extend beyond 200 nautical miles from the baseline from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured.

Which of the statements given above are correct?

Answer: 4

Provisions of UNCLOS

Zone	Distance from Baseline	Rights
Territorial Sea	Up to 12 nautical miles	Full sovereignty, like land territory. Foreign ships allowed innocent passage.
Contiguous Zone	12 to 24 nautical miles	Can enforce laws on customs, immigration, and security.
Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ)	Up to 200 nautical miles	Special rights over exploration and use of marine resources (fishing, oil, gas).
Continental Shelf	Up to 200 nautical miles (can extend to 350 nautical miles in special cases)	Rights to resources on and under the seabed.
High Seas	Beyond national jurisdiction	Open to all; governed by international law.

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is an international agreement that establishes a legal framework for all marine and maritime activities.
Every State has the right to establish the breadth of its territorial sea up to a limit not exceeding 12 nautical miles, measured from baselines determined in accordance with this Convention.
Hence statement 1 is correct.
Subject to this Convention, ships of all States, whether coastal or land-locked, enjoy the right of innocent passage through the territorial sea.
Hence statement 2 is correct.
The exclusive economic zone shall not extend beyond 200 nautical miles from the baselines from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured.
Hence statement 3 is correct.

What is an ‘Innocent Passage’?

UNCLOS III defines innocent passage as the passage of a vessel passes through coastal states’ waters under the following three conditions:
The vessel is undertaking an expeditious passage
The passage is conducted in a continuous manner
The passage that is not “prejudicial to the peace, good order or security” of the coastal state.