Ottawa pledges to work with Washington after the United States claimed parts of the Arctic seabed that the Canadian government also claims.
Washington filed its request last month with the United Nations agency that reviews such requests.
As expected, the American claim affects a large part of the Beaufort Sea bed – seabed that Canada also claims.
A United Nations treaty grants states rights to the seabed and their natural resources if they can prove that their continental shelf extends beyond 200 nautical miles from their coast and is a natural extension of that shelf. continent.
Canada filed its own request in 2019, which overlaps with those of Russia and Denmark, as well as that now of the United States.
Although Washington never signed the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the Americans are committed to its framework.
The UN does not rule on the maritime limits and outer limits of the continental shelves of states, but it evaluates the scientific data that supports each party’s claims and then leaves it to them to negotiate a settlement.