sea lanes passage permits transit in the normal mode between one part of the high seas or EEZ and another through the normal routes used for international navigation or through sea lanes approved by the International Maritime Organization (1MG). To date, there has been a general trend toward compliance with the Convention by nations claiming archipelagic status. However, the U.S. opportunity to influence the actions of archipelagic States which choose to designate sea lanes, and to ensure compliance with the Convention's requirement to submit sea lane proposals to the 1MG, would be diminished as a non-party to the Convention. [see Figure 3]
* Freedoms of Navigation, Overflight, and Other Uses in the EEZ. A third of the world's oceans, including entire seas such as the Mediterranean, the Red Sea, and the Persian Gulf, are within 200 NM of the coast, and thus within the permissible limits of the EEZ. We are separated from most places in the world by the EEZ of at least one other State. The Convention expressly preserves in the EEZ the high seas freedoms of navigation, overflight, laying and maintenance of submarine cables and pipelines, and related uses. Respect for these freedoms by coastal States around the world is indispensible to our global mobility, and to our national security, trade and communications. Most coastal States have already implemented their right to an EEZ, including rights with respect to regulation of pollution from ships navigating in the zone. The challenge is to ensure that they respect the limitations on those rights set forth in the Convention. Should we fail, our global mobility will be prejudiced, and the cost of securing mobility by other means could escalate dramatically in some places and become prohibitive in others.
* High Seas Freedoms. The Convention makes an important contribution by defining the types of activities which are permissible beyond territorial seas. Consistent with the principle of "due regard" for the rights of other users, U.S. forces remain free to engage in task force maneuvering, flight operations, military exercises and surveys, surveillance and intelligence activities, telecommunications and space activities, and ordnance testing and firing.
* Sovereign Immunity of Warships and Other Public Vessels and Aircraft. The concept of sovereign immunity of warships and other public vessels has come under increasing assault by coastal States wishing to circumscribe this historic right on the basis of security or environmental concerns. The Convention contains a vitally important codification of the customary law principle that naval auxiliaries are entitled to the same immunity from enforcement jurisdiction by non-flag States as warships enjoy. To support military operations around the globe, there must be the assurance that military vessels and their cargoes can move freely without being subject to levy or interference by coastal States. The Convention also makes great strides in harmonizing environmental and security concerns by assigning to the flag State the responsibility to adopt appropriate measures for sovereign immune ships and aircraft to respect the marine environment.
Recent events in North Korea, Haiti, Rwanda, Iraq and the Balkans serve as important reminders that we still live in an uncertain and dangerous world. Threats to world order and U.S. interests in the post-
