Defense Secretary Leon Panetta tells senators that by not ratifying the Law of the Sea Convention, the United States puts itself at greater risk of entering into conflict
“If we are not a party to this treaty and can’t deal with it at the table then we have to deal with it at sea with our naval power, and once that happens, we clearly increase the risk for confrontation,” Panetta told members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Signing the treaty could also further isolate Iran, which would remain one of the few countries left to ratify it, he said.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army Gen. Martin Dempsey joined Panetta at the witness table. The rare appearance of all three together on Capitol Hill reflected the Obama administration’s new resolve to get the treaty passed.
Dempsey testified that the treaty would not harm national security or place restraints on strategy; neither would it impede the ability to collect intelligence, Instead, it would enhance U.S. security objectives by giving the United States the diplomatic, legal and moral authority to insist other countries obey international law, Panetta argued. This influence could be particularly useful in places like the South China Sea and the Strait of Hormuz, where the United States would like to see peaceful resolution to maritime and territorial disputes, as well as the preservation of the freedom of transit.
“We are strong because we follow the law,” Panetta said. “How can we argue that other nations must abide by international rules when we haven’t joined the treaty that codifies those rules?”
First negotiated between 1973 and 1982, the Law of the Sea Convention sets rules for countries’ use of ocean resources and determines to what extent a country’s territory extends offshore. It sets standards on activities like deep-sea mining and navigation.