Maritime Delimitation in the Indian Ocean; (Somalia v. Kenya)

Abstract

International Court of Justice — Delimitation of maritime boundary between Kenya and Somalia — United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 1982 — Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf — Territorial sea — Exclusive economic zone — Continental shelf — Relationship between delimitation of maritime boundaries and delineation of outer limits of continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles

Sea — Existence of tacitly agreed maritime boundary along parallel of latitude — Acquiescence — Whether Somalia had not protested Kenya’s actions when protests were called for — Evidence of naval patrols, fishing conduct and oil concessions — Delimitation of territorial sea — Identification of base points — Construction of median line — Delimitation of exclusive economic zone — Methodology — Three-stage approach — Establishment of provisional equidistance line — Relevant circumstances — Cut-off effect — Whether Kenya’s coastal projections inequitably cut off by equidistance line — Consideration of concavity in broader geographical context — Position of third States — Relevance of agreed maritime boundary between Kenya and Tanzania to existence of cut-off effect — Disproportionality test — Delimitation of continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles — Methodology — Whether Court could delimit continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles — Proof of continental shelf entitlement beyond 200 nautical miles — Use of directional arrow

State responsibility — Obligations of States in undelimited maritime areas — Whether Kenya’s conduct breached Somalia’s sovereign rights and jurisdiction in disputed maritime area — Whether Kenya breached its obligation not to jeopardize or hamper reaching of agreement on maritime delimitation — Articles 74(3) and 83(3) of United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 1982 — Reparation