The Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea (the Conference) began in 1973 and ended with the adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) on 12 December 1982. The US administration of Republican President Richard Nixon was a principal initiator of the Third Conference. The US maintained a bipartisan approach and actively participated in the Conference negotiations throughout the presidencies of Richard Nixon (Republican, 1969-74), Gerald Ford (Republican, 1974-1977) and Jimmy Carter (Democratic, 1977-81). However, the situation changed with the election of Republican President Ronald Reagan in 1980. Reagan replaced the US negotiating team and called for a review of the provisions in Part IX on Deep Sea Mining.
As America has not acceded to UNCLOS, its nationals cannot serve on the institutions established under UNCLOS, including the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, the International Seabed Authority and the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf. In addition, the US cannot bid for deep sea mining sites from the International Seabed Authority. Furthermore, as a non-party to UNCLOS, the US does not have access to the dispute settlement system in UNCLOS.
Given that the US concerns on deep sea mining were addressed by the 1994 Implementation Agreement, many observers are baffled as to why America has not become a party to UNCLOS, despite the US position that UNCLOS “for the most” part reflects customary international law.