International Law and Treaties

• 2nd International Symposium on the Law of the Sea (March 23, 2016)
• International Symposium on the Law of the Sea "The Rule of Law in the Seas of Asia: Navigational Chart for Peace and Stability" (March 31, 2015)

For Japan, a maritime nation surrounded by sea, the international law of the sea based primarily on the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is indispensable for securing its maritime rights and interests as well as for undertaking maritime activities smoothly.

Japan has been actively promoting the rule of law at sea, including by contributing to the three organs established by UNCLOS, such as the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) and the International Seabed Authority (ISA).

• International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS)
  • Statement by the Press Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan on Delivery of the Judgment by the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea on the dispute concerning delimitation of the maritime boundary between Bangladesh and Myanmar in the Bay of Bengal (March 2012)
  • Courtesy Call by Mr. Shunji YANAI, President of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) on Mr. Koichiro Gemba, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan (November 2011)
  • Statement by Minister for Foreign Affairs on the Election of Judge Shunji Yanai, as President of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) (October 2011)
  • Courtesy Call by Mr. Shunji YANAI, Judge of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) on Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan Seiji Maehara (January 2011)
• Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf
  • Japan's Contribution to the Trust Fund for the purpose of defraying the costs of participation of the members of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf from developing States in the meetings of the Commission (June 11, 2014)
  • Japan's Contribution to the Trust Fund for the purpose of defraying the costs of participation of the members of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf from developing States in the meetings of the Commission (June 11, 2013)
  • Election of Dr. Tetsuro Urabe, Professor, Graduate School of Science, the University of Tokyo, and Special Assistant to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, in the Election of Members of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) (June 2012)
  • Japan's Contribution to the Trust Fund for the purpose of defraying the costs of participation of the members of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf from developing States in the meetings of the Commission (June 2012)
• International Seabed Authority
  • Japan's Contribution to the Voluntary Trust Fund of the International Seabed Authority (July 24, 2014)
  • Japan's Contribution to the Voluntary Trust Fund of the International Seabed Authority (July 25, 2013)
  • Visit to Japan by Mr. Nii Odunton, Secretary-General of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) (January 2012)