Keywords
international jurisprudence
ITLOS
Argentina
Ghana
arrest of ships
territorial waters
sovereign immunity
warships
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea
How to Cite
Abstract
The jurisprudence of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (itlos) in prompt release cases seems to have been clarified through a series of relevant precedents. However, for the first time since its creation the itlos deal with the detention of a warship in a foreign State. As a matter of international custom law warships have long been considered immune from enforcement measures, as evidenced by a number of multilateral treaties, including the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. The purpose of this article is to analyze, in the light of conventions, national statues and decisions of international courts if a warship can be seized on a foreign State. This article discusses the A. R. A. Libertad case decision of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea. It concludes that Ghana contravened international law on immunity of Argentinean rights. Moreover the A. R. A. Libertad case presents an important decision from the itlos in the law of sovereign immunity of warships, but the question of the scope of the A. R. A. Libertad case holding remains unsettled.
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