INTERNATIONAL
MARITIME ORGANIZATION
|
IMO
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MSC 70/11/5
11 September 1998
Original: ENGLISH
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MARITIME SAFETY COMMITTEE
70th session
Agenda item 11
SAFETY OF NAVIGATION
Navigational warnings in the event
of missile launch
Submitted by Japan
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SUMMARY
|
| Executive
Summary: |
This document
contains Japanese
comments on the
missile launch
incident without any
prior navigational
warnings. |
| Action to be Taken: |
Paragraph 4. |
| Related documents: |
None. |
|
1 The Democratic
People's Republic of Korea launched
a ballistic
missile over the territory of
Japan on 31 August
without any prior notices or
warnings. Parts of the
missile are estimated to have
landed in the Sea of
Japan as well as the Pacific
Ocean, both of which are
major trade routes and important
fishing grounds.
2 Although no harm has been reported,
fortuitously, to the vessels
navigating in the
waters, the firing of the missile
posed a great
threat to the safety of navigation.
Attention should
be drawn, in particular, to the
fact that neither any
navigational warnings in accordance
with IMO
resolution A.706(17)-IM0/IHO
World-Wide Navigational
Warning Service Guidance document,
nor any
information on the missile launch
was issued in
advance. Shipping and fishing
communities should not
be exposed to such great peril.
Negligence in acting
on the resolution poses a serious
threat to the
safety of navigation. Japan believes
that appropriate
action should be taken by IMO
to ensure that
appropriate navigational warnings
will be issued
prior to incidents which may
threaten the safety of
navigation.
3 To this end, contents of resolution
A,706(17) should be circulated
to all Member
Governments as a reminder. In
addition, consideration
should be given to the amendments
to chapter V of the
1974 SOLAS Convention currently
being revised in the
Sub-Committee on Safety of Navigation,
particularly
draft regulation 4 on navigational
warnings (NAV
44/5, annex) in order to make
it mandatory to issue
navigational warnings including
notification to
neighbouring States and other
States concerned. In
relation to this, it may be desirable
to incorporate
World-Wide Navigational Warning
Service into the
proposed amendments in order
to augment the safety of
navigation.
Action requested of the Committee
4 The Committee is invited to consider
the above comments and take action
as appropriate.
For reasons of economy, this document is
printed in a limited
number. Delegates are
kindly asked to bring
their copies to
meetings and not to request
additional
copies.
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I:/MSC/70/11-5.WPD
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