Round-Up Press Release

COMMISSION ON LIMITS OF CONTINENTAL SHELF CONCLUDES TWENTY-SECOND SESSION

NEW YORK, 12 September (United Nations Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea) -- The Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (the Commission) held its twenty-second session at United Nations Headquarters from 18 August to 12 September, pursuant to the decision taken at its twenty-first session (CLCS/58, paragraph 57) and on the basis of General Assembly resolution 62/215 (paragraph 49).

During the session, apart from the work carried out in plenary meetings, the Commission also proceeded with the technical examination of submissions made by coastal States in accordance with article 76 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (the Convention) at the Geographic Information System (GIS) laboratories and other technical facilities of the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea, Office of Legal Affairs (the Division).

At the twenty-second session, the Commission received the submissions made by Barbados and a partial submission by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in respect of Ascension Island.  These submissions are the tenth and eleventh, respectively, to be received by the Commission.

The submission by Barbados was presented on 26 August during the plenary part of the session by the Delegation of Barbados, headed by Leonard Nurse, Barbados’ Special Envoy for the Environment, Leader of Barbados’ Continental Shelf Project Management Team, Head of Delegation.  The Commission decided that the submission of Barbados would be addressed through a subcommission, which would be established at a later session.

The submission by the United Kingdom was presented on 27 August during the plenary part of the session, by the Delegation of the United Kingdom headed by Douglas Wilson, Assistant Legal Adviser, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Head of Delegation.  The submission made by the United Kingdom was a partial submission relating to the continental shelf of Ascension Island.  The Commission decided that the submission of the United Kingdom would be addressed through a subcommission, which would be established at a later session.

The Commission continued the examination of the joint submission by France, Ireland, Spain and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the submissions made by Norway, France and Mexico.  The subcommissions which had been established at the previous sessions to examine those submissions reported to the Commission on the work that they had carried out intersessionally and continued the examination of their submissions.

The Commission also had before it the recommendations prepared by the subcommission established for consideration of the submission by New Zealand, which had been presented at the twenty-first session.  The Commission adopted the recommendations, including a summary thereof, prepared by the subcommission.

The Commission also adopted a summary containing excerpts of the recommendations of the Commission in relation to the submission made by Australia on 15 November 2005, and a summary containing excerpts of the recommendations of the Commission in relation to the submission made by Ireland on 25 May 2005.

During the session, the Secretary of the Commission provided the members of the Commission with an update concerning the activities carried out by the Division with regard to training courses for delineation of the outer limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles and for the preparation of a submission to the Commission.

The twenty-third session of the Commission will be held from 2 March to 9 April 2009, on the understanding that the period from 23 March to 3 April would be devoted to plenary meetings and that the periods from 2 to 20 March and from 6 to 9 April would be used for the technical examination of submissions at the GIS laboratories and other technical facilities of the Division.

The Commission noted with appreciation the high standard of Secretariat services rendered to it as well as the upgrade of the facilities of the Division, including the acquisition of additional software packages.  The Commission expressed its appreciation to the staff of the Division and other members of the Secretariat for the assistance provided to the Commission during the twenty-second session.

For information on the history and purpose of the Commission, see earlier Press Release SEA/1818.  For additional information, please visit the website of the Commission at www.un.org/Depts/los/index.htm.

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For information media • not an official record