THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, July 1, 1994 TAG: 9407010366
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A10 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Short : 37 lines
The United States, after 11 years of opposition, has decided to sign a United Nations treaty that governs international waters, Secretary of State Warren Christopher said Thursday.
Officials said the United States dropped its opposition based on changes in provisions relating to seabed mining.
U.S. administrations had refused to sign the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea since it became open for signature in 1982.
The United States contended that institutions established to oversee seabed mining imposed severe limits on U.S. influence. It also alleged that the treaty ignored legitimate interests of mining companies.
Amendments designed to satisfy U.S. objections have been approved, and Christopher disclosed his decision to sign the convention while testifying before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
``I think this is a very important development for the United States because it gives us an opportunity to, in a market-oriented context, gain the benefits of some of the resources of the Law of the Sea,'' he said. The United States will sign the treaty on July 29; the convention itself takes effect in November.
Formal U.S. participation hinges on Senate ratification.
Elliot Richardson, a Republican and former Law of the Sea negotiator for the United States, has indicated he supports the treaty as amended, officials said. by CNB