UN General Assembly
1975

98. Negotiations so far have demonstrated that there is broad support for the extension of the sovereign rights of coastal States over natural resources in an economic zone limited to 200 nautical miles. This principle will form the basis for a system of resource management, but does not in itself provide exhaustive solutions, There will still be an important place for international management in order to achieve conservation of the living resources and provide the world with a continuing supply of protein from the seas. We must develop more effective machinery for inter-national collaboration in this field, adjusted to the new concept of the economic zone, and designed to give rational harvest, long-range productivity and optimum utilization. 99. If the Conference on the Law of the Sea fails, it will be very difficult to establish effective international regimes, in particular for the international sea-bed area. It will also mean a serious setback in our efforts to develop adequate machinery for formulating international legal rules that respond to present-day needs.