Legal issues and regulatory developments

This chapter provides information on some important legal issues and recent regulatory developments in the fields of transport and trade facilitation, together with information on the status of ratification of some of the main maritime conventions. Important developments include the entry into force, on 14 September 2011, of the International Convention on Arrest of Ships, which had been adopted at a joint United Nations/ International Maritime Organization (IMO) Diplomatic Conference, held in 1999, under the auspices of UNCTAD. Moreover, during 2010 and the first half of 2011, important discussions continued at IMO regarding the scope and content of a possible international regime to control greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from international shipping. Finally, there were a number of recent regulatory developments in relation to maritime security and safety, as well as in respect of trade facilitation agreements at both the multilateral and regional levels.

Related Subject(s): Transportation and Public Safety