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the Convention would also demonstrate our commitment 
to the rule of law, strengthen our credibility among those 
nations that are already party to the Convention, and 
allow us to bring the full force of our influence in chal-
lenging excessive maritime claims’’, on July 9, 2015, be-
fore the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate; 
Whereas the past Chairman of the Joints Chief of Staff, Gen-
eral Joseph F. Dunford, further stated that ‘‘by remain-
ing outside the Convention, the United States remains in 
scarce company with Iran, Venezuela, North Korea, and 
Syria’’ and ‘‘by failing to join the Convention, some coun-
tries may come to doubt our commitment to act in ac-
cordance with international law’’, on July 9, 2015, before 
the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate; 
Whereas the past President and Chief Executive Officer of 
the United States Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Thomas J. 
Donahue, stated that ‘‘we support joining the Convention 
because it is in our national interest—both in our na-
tional security and our economic interests’’, ‘‘becoming a 
party to the Treaty benefits the U.S. economically by 
providing American companies the legal certainty and 
stability they need to hire and invest’’, and ‘‘companies 
will be hesitant to take on the investment risk and cost 
to explore and develop the resources of the sea—particu-
larly on the extended continental shelf (ECS)—without 
the legal certainty and stability accession to LOS pro-
vides’’, on June 28, 2012, before the Committee on For-
eign Relations of the Senate; 
Whereas the past President and Chief Executive Officer of 
the United States Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Thomas J. 
Donahue, further stated that ‘‘the benefits of joining cut 
across many important industries including telecommuni-
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cations, mining, shipping, and oil and natural gas’’, and 
‘‘joining the Convention will provide the U.S. a critical 
voice on maritime issues—from mineral claims in the 
Arctic to how International Seabed Authority (ISA) 
funds are distributed’’, on June 28, 2012, before the 
Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate; 
Whereas the past Commandant of the United States Coast 
Guard, retired Admiral Paul Zukunft, stated on Feb-
ruary 12, 2016, ‘‘With the receding of the icepack, the 
Arctic Ocean has become the focus of international inter-
est.’’, ‘‘All Arctic states agree that the Law of the Sea 
Convention is the governing legal regime for the Arctic 
Ocean . . . yet, we remain the only Arctic nation that has 
not ratified the very instrument that provides this accept-
ed legal framework governing the Arctic Ocean and its 
seabed.’’, and ‘‘Ratification of the Law of the Sea Con-
vention supports our economic interests, environmental 
protection, and safety of life at sea, especially in the Arc-
tic Ocean.’’; 
Whereas the past Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral John 
M. Richardson, stated that ‘‘acceding to the Convention 
would strengthen our credibility and strategic position’’, 
and ‘‘we undermine our leverage by not signing up to the 
same rule book by which we are asking other countries 
to accept’’, on July 30, 2015, in his nomination hearing 
before the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate; 
Whereas the past Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral John 
M. Richardson, further stated that ‘‘becoming a part of 
[UNCLOS] would give us a great deal of credibility, and 
particularly as it pertains to the unfolding opportunities 
in the Arctic’’, and ‘‘this provides a framework to adju-
dicate disputes’’, on July 30, 2015, in his nomination 
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hearing before the Committee on Armed Services of the 
Senate; and 
Whereas the past United States Special Representative of 
State for the Arctic and former Commandant of the 
Coast Guard, Admiral Robert Papp, Jr., stated that ‘‘as 
a non-party to the Law of the Sea Convention, the U.S. 
is at a significant disadvantage relative to the other Arc-
tic Ocean coastal States’’, ‘‘those States are parties to 
the Convention, and are well along the path to obtaining 
legal certainty and international recognition of their Arc-
tic extended continental shelf’’, and ‘‘becoming a Party to 
the Law of the Sea Convention would allow the United 
States to fully secure its rights to the continental shelf 
off the coast of Alaska, which is likely to extend out to 
more than 600 nautical miles’’, on December 10, 2014, 
before the Subcommittee on Europe, Eurasia, and 
Emerging Threats of the Committee on Foreign Affairs 
of the House of Representatives: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) affirms that it is in the national interest for 
the United States to become a formal signatory of 
the United Nations Convention on the Law of the 
Sea (UNCLOS), done at Montego Bay, Jamaica, 
December 10, 1982; 
(2) urges the United States Senate to give its 
advice and consent to the ratification of the 
UNCLOS; and 
(3) 
recommends 
the 
ratification 
of 
the 
UNCLOS remain a top priority for the Federal Gov-
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ernment, the importance of which was most recently 
underscored by the strategic challenges the United 
States faces in the Asia-Pacific, the Arctic, and the 
Black Sea regions. 
Æ 
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