Right to Innocent Passage in the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea in Theory and Practice: The Case of the Islamic Republic of Iran

The 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea is the most recent text concerning the rules governing the sea, which contains innovations in this regard. Despite many states took part in the negotiations on the Third UN Conference on the Law of the Sea leading to the adoption of the 1982 Convention which was later signed and ratified by many states, there are still different and occasionally conflicting practices among the members of the international community in this regard. The Convention has also provided for regulations on the right to innocent passage, which poses many challenges. This is indeed one of the main reasons why Iran has declined to join the 1982 Convention despite an Iranian delegate took part in the Third Conference. Hence, in this regard, the 1993 Act on the Maritime Zones of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Persian Gulf and Oman Sea will be applicable. This paper deals with the right to innocent passage in the 1982 Convention and the practice of many states in this respect. It also compares those practices with the relevant Iran’s maritime zones law.