Attempted Annexation of Crimea and Maritime Environment Legal Protection

Анотація

This article is devoted to establishing the real situation with the legal protection mechanisms for maritime ecosystems adjacent to the Crimean Peninsula and to elaborate the relevant proposals. Its authors reflected and analyzed the framework on the current interstate conflict-related challenges to the ecology of the Black Sea and Sea of Azov. Researchers watched the current proceedings that Ukraine initiated in this area and proposed additional legal and organizational steps for Ukraine and other civilized nations to improve the ongoing situation. Article proves that the current mechanisms of the international human rights and ecologic law are not well applicable to those issues as they do not include the preliminary consent of other conflict’s State party. Article reflects the key challenges for maritime environment, including uncontrolled fishing, discharge of sewage from coastal cities, significant pollution due to the Black Sea Fleet activities, pollution due to the uncontrolled operation of drilling facilities, destruction of unique Karkinitsky and Kalamitsky bays’s seabed, pollution of those bays by Northern Crimea’s chemical industry, desalination plants’ construction in the peninsula, artificial usage the external borders of the Crimea-adjacent marine protected areas for Russia’s territorial claims spreading. The mechanisms, established by the international maritime law, used by Ukraine since 2015, like Case No. 2017-06 “Dispute Concerning Coastal State Rights in the Black Sea, Sea of Azov, and Kerch Strait” in the ad hoc Arbitrary Tribunal regarding the United Nations’ Convention on the Law of the Sea, 1982 are not too effective in the environmental issues. Article pointed that in this Case No. 2017-06 Tribunal rejected own jurisdiction to the Ukraine’s conventional demands as coastal State for the Crimean Peninsula, including the relevant issues of the maritime ecology. Authors propose to start preparations on Ukraine’s next usage the mechanisms, established by the UN Convention on the prohibition of military or any other hostile use of environmental modification technique, 1976. Relevant risks and possible results of such eventual usage were evaluated in the article.

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