Landlocked States and the Protection of the Marine Environment – with Special Emphasis on Switzerland

Abstract

This thesis assesses the obligations of landlocked states (LLSs) to protect the marine environment as a whole. In order to limit the scope, three international instruments are focussed upon: the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and the Fish Stocks Agreement (FSA). This thesis then goes one step beyond the existing regulations, and brings the obligations to protect the marine environment in conjunction with the participation in regional fisheries management organisations (RFMOs). It is examined what role RFMOs play in the protection of the marine environment and if there is a right for LLSs to accede to RFMOs with the sole interest of marine environmental protection. The focus lies again on the UNCLOS, the CBD, and the FSA. Furthermore, the extension of the powers of RFMOs from fisheries management to additional protection of the marine environment is discussed. In order to understand the role of LLSs in using and protecting the oceans, it is important to know the modalities of the right to transit and the right to access to the sea. It is therefore assessed whether landlocked states have a right to transit and a right to access to the sea, and how these rights are regulated. Throughout the whole thesis, a special emphasis is put on the case of Switzerland. All general discussions regarding rights and obligations of LLSs are adapted to Switzerland’s position as feasibly possible.