Abstract: Proponents of U.S. accession to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) insist that the U.S. must join the convention in order to secure title to oil and gas resources located on the U.S. extended continental shelf (ECS). However,…
North Korea defied international pressure and launched its Unha-3 missile on April 12. U.S. and South Korean officials indicate that the missile failed several minutes after launch. Although Pyongyang had characterized the launch as that of a peaceful civilian satellite, it is a blatant violation of existing U.N. Security Council…
Abstract: The 2012–2013 U.N. regular budget is historic because it marks the end of a decade of unprecedented growth of the U.N. budget. However, the U.N. budget process suggests that this will likely be an aberration and that irresponsible budget growth will resume shortly.…
The final Preparatory Committee (PrepCom) for the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) in February decided that, in preparation for the July 2–27 conference in New York that will finalize the ATT, U.N. member states should by March 31 submit short statements on the provisions that they believe should define any…
The United Nations Security Council passes a resolution noting “widespread and systematic attacks” on civilians and authorizing U.N. member states “to take all necessary measures … to protect” them. It invokes a little-known concept called the responsibility to protect (or R2P) as justification for the use of force to stop…
Abstract: Among the many reasons why the U.S. should not accede to the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is the reality that it would expose the United States to international environmental lawsuits that would harm its environmental, economic, and military…
The final Preparatory Committee (PrepCom) for the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) was held last week. The purpose of this PrepCom was to adopt rules of procedure for the U.N. Conference on the Arms Trade Treaty, which will be held in New York July 2–27. This conference is intended to…
FYI: Heritage WebMemos are now called Issue Briefs. Late last year, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) granted membership to the Palestinian Authority—despite opposition from the U.S. and with forewarning that such a step would lead the U.S.…
Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime, which has made war on its own citizens, has lost whatever legitimacy it once had. The United States correctly has called for Assad to step down from power. His regime has supported numerous Palestinian, Lebanese, Iraqi, and Kurdish terrorist groups in attacks on Americans and…
FYI: Heritage WebMemos are now called Issue Briefs. The final Preparatory Committee (PrepCom) for the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) will be held February 13–17. The purpose of this PrepCom is to determine the rules of procedure for the U.N.…
This key research from 2004 has been updated in several Heritage Foundation publications, including: Congress Should Ignore Budget Requests Relating to the Law of the Sea Treaty By Steven Groves (WebMemo #1804) February 8, 2008 …
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) Law of the Sea: UNCLOS—sometimes called the “Law of the Sea Treaty”…
Abstract: If the U.S. becomes a member of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, it will be required to transfer a large portion of the royalties generated on the U.S. extended continental shelf to the International Seabed Authority. These royalties…
On March 28, President Obama delivered a speech for the purpose of explaining his decision to use military force in Libya.[1] Although the President gave multiple justifications for the U.S. intervention, it appears more and more that his philosophical basis for ordering the use of force by the…
On July 11–15, the United Nations held a third meeting of the Preparatory Committee for the Arms Trade Treaty. The committee discusses the content of the treaty in advance of a meeting of the conference in 2012 to finalize the treaty and open it for ratification. This treaty is purportedly…
The idea of establishing an international court to prosecute serious international crimes--war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide--has long held a special place in the hearts of human rights activists and those hoping to hold perpetrators of terrible crimes to account. In 1998, that idea became reality when the Rome Statute of the…
U.S. contributions to the U.N. system reached a record level of $7.692 billion in fiscal year (FY) 2010—a staggering 21 percent increase over FY 2009.[1] This is the third consecutive year in which U.S. contributions set new records. The current budgetary crisis should focus congressional…
Negotiations for a new U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) are supposed to be finalized in July 2012. Some of its supporters argue it would have no “impact on the ability of individuals within the United States to acquire and possess firearms.”[1] Even if this is true, it is…
Abstract: In the six two-year budgets between 2000 and 2011, the United Nations’ regular budget grew by 117 percent. In its 2010–2011 budget, the U.N. spent a whopping $5.42 billion, with American taxpayers footing 22 percent of the bill. The 2012–2013 budget was expected…
The United States joined many Western nations in expelling Syrian diplomats yesterday in a coordinated reprimand of the...…
Syria’s “Arab Spring,” long delayed by barbaric repression, is now rapidly deteriorating into a bloody civil war. The...…
Back in 1982, President Ronald Reagan decided not to sign a treaty known as "Law of the Sea" (LOST), a United Nations...…
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Former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott is lobbying for the Senate to ratify a treaty that would undermine...…
The National Association of Postmasters of the United States (NAPUS) recently registered an odd complaint in a letter...…
One would think that Harvard Law School-educated Navanethem “Navi” Pillay, a South African jurist and current United...…
As North Korea shows no signs of halting its missile test slated for this week, it is easy to forget that North Korean...…
The U.N. Security Council finally reached an agreement on Syria yesterday. In typical U.N. form, it amounts to more talk...…
If the U.S. reverses its 30-year policy and joins the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), it will certainly...…
Senior Research Fellow in Anglo-American Relations
Director, Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom
Bernard and Barbara Lomas Fellow
Vice President, Foreign and Defense Policy Studies, and Director, The Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International Studies
Director, Center for International Trade and Economics and the Mark A. Kolokotrones Fellow in Economic Freedom
F.M. Kirby Research Fellow in National Security Policy
Jay Kingham Fellow in International Regulatory Affairs