MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentina makes official presentation of new continental shelf outer limit

Deputy minister Carlos Foradori, who chaired the presentation panel said “this is definitively a factory of sovereignty creation, silently, constantly, permanently”

Argentina on Monday made the official presentation of the outer limit of its continental platform, passed by the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf, CLCS, on March 11, during a media conference which included officials from the foreign ministry, officers from the Navy and Coast Guard, scientists and lawmakers.

 The new outer limit means Argentina incorporates an additional 1.7 million sq km of continental shelf to its current 4.8 million sq km, extending from the base line to the 200 miles maritime limit.

The emphasis of the event was that the extension of the continental shelf sovereignty was an effort, “designed and not an accident” achieved over years by different Argentine governments, silently and constantly, even in the most complicated moments of our economic history“.

Not a word was mentioned by minister Malcorra in her video regarding the Falklands/Malvinas and South Atlantic Islands dispute.

”This is a historic occasion for the Argentine Republic since we've given a great step in the demarcation of the outer limit of our continental shelf: the most extended limit of Argentina and our frontier with humanity“, said foreign minister Susana Malcorra in a video which was screened during the conference at the San Martin Palace. She added, ”this way we reaffirm our sovereignty rights over the resources of our continental shelf: minerals, hydrocarbons and sedentary species“.

The Argentine official added that ”CLCS, the scientific body made up of 21 international experts of renowned prestige, created by the United Nations convention on Oceans and Law of the Sea, adopted by consensus, that is to say without a single nay vote the Recommendations on the Argentine presentation. They have recognized the Argentine case as a 'leading case'“.

Malcorra said that the area included in the demarcation presents, from the 200 maritime miles and the outer limit covers approximately 1.7m sq km, that is almost equivalent to 48% of the emerged territory of Argentina, which adds to the 4.8m sq km between the base line and the 200 maritime miles. ”I sincerely believe it is a very significant achievement of Argentine foreign policy“, concluded the minister.

Deputy minister Carlos Foradori, who chaired the presentation panel at Palacio San Martin said ”this is definitively a factory of sovereignty creation, silently, constantly, permanently. And I want to underline that it has been a policy which was undertaken by design, not by accident. This policy was advanced even in the most complicated moments of our economic history“.

However it must also be mentioned that according to the official CLCS round up release of its fortieth session, at UN headquarters from February first to 18 March, it does make a mention to those parts of the Argentine submission that are subject to dispute and those related to Antarctica claim.

In effect, ”With regard to the recommendations in respect of the submission made by Argentina, it is recalled that, previously, the Commission had already decided that it was not in a position to consider and qualify those parts of the submission that were subject to dispute and those parts that were related to the continental shelf appurtenant to Antarctica (see CLCS/64, paras. 76 and 77 and CLCS/76 para. 57)”.