From sundering seas to arenas for cooperation: applying the regime of enclosed and semi-enclosed seas to the Adriatic

Abstract

The law of the sea provides the international legal basis for the coastal states of the Adriatic Sea to claim zones of maritime jurisdiction off their shores and divide the Adriatic Sea between them. The same international law of the sea obligates the Adriatic littoral states to cooperate in a variety of ways, notably by establishing a special regime applicable to enclosed and semi-enclosed seas such as the Adriatic. This paper explores the maritime jurisdictional claims allowed under international law and claimed in the Adriatic in particular. The implementation of the regime of enclosed and semi-enclosed seas in the Adriatic context is then explored.