A territorial sea is the concept used to designate that part of the ocean, located adjacent to the coast and extending for 12 nautical miles, which is the same as 22.2 square kilometers and over which a state exercises absolute sovereignty, just as it happens with respect to the waters that are in the interior of its territory.
Part of an ocean that is located 22 km. of the coast corresponding to a nation and therefore integrates its territory
We must say that those more than 22 km. They are counted from the baselines from which the measurement of their width is taken.
The aforementioned baselines are those that allow the delimitation of the territorial sea, as they can be normal, straight or archipelagic.
Scope of sovereignty over the territorial sea
For example, it is that the nation in question will have all the right in the world to exercise its authority in that aquatic space, that is, it may protect or prohibit the performance of certain actions, especially suspend those that harm it.
It should be noted that the main reason and argument when it comes to recognizing the sovereignty of the state in question over the adjoining sea is that this control is essential to guarantee its security and the defense of its interests.
In any case, there are some limitations to that state power over the territorial sea and it has to do with the permission that is granted to ships from other states, as long as it does not imply any type of affront that threatens against the security of the nation.
Innocent passage permit: rapid passage of a foreign vessel, and other laws established in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
Such permission is formally known as Innocent step and is seated in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea; Thus, when it is a fast passage and without prolonged stops, ships from all states will be allowed to navigate the corresponding territorial sea.
Another important consideration that must be known regarding these seas is that in the event that the coasts of two states are adjacent or are located opposite each other, neither of the two nations will have the right to extend its dominion over the adjacent sea over a median line. that it has equidistant points with respect to the points closest to the baselines, which is from which the width of the territorial sea of each of the countries is measured, unless a bilateral agreement has been reached.
As well as the Innocent Pass, the delimitation of those 22 km. From the coast, they were resolved by the aforementioned United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (CDM or CONVEMAR), which was born in 1982, and which has 168 signatory countries, is considered one of the most relevant multilateral agreements that have been materialized throughout history, after the Charter of the United Nations, so that they can get an idea of the importance of this treaty.
Even its realization took almost ten years of discussions until the final text was reached.
It is popularly called the national constitution of the oceans because it establishes a series of guidelines that regulate these waters that are so important for the life of men and other species, and also for that of the nations of our planet.
Said Convention is composed as a constitution and thus it is opened by a preamble, which is followed by 17 parts and 9 annexes.
The topics it contains and legislates are varied and many, all obviously linked to the rights of the sea, establishing limits of maritime zones: exclusive economic zones, the high seas, the continental shelf; navigable rights and straits that allow external navigation; the so-called archipelagic states (states made up of one or more archipelagos); and it also offers a series of considerations about how the resources of the sea should be conserved and protected, which as we know are so important for the life and development of a country.
It also sets out conditions for marine research and the methodologies to follow when solving boundary problems that may appear between states.
