China reports to UN on continental shelf limits

China on Thursday made a presentation on its Partial Submission Concerning the Outer Limits of the Continental Shelf beyond 200 nautical miles in the East China Sea to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea ( UNCLOS).

China said the natural prolongation of the continental shelf of China in the East China Sea extends to the Okinawa Trough and beyond 200 nautical miles from the baseline from which the breadth of the territorial sea of China is measured.

According to the UNCLOS and its relevant provisions, if the continental shelf of a coastal state extends beyond 200 nautical miles from the baselines from which the width of the territorial sea is measured, information on the limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles shall be submitted by the coastal state to the CLCS under the UNCLOS.

China presented its Partial Submission Concerning the Outer Limits of the Continental Shelf beyond 200 nautical miles in the East China Sea to the CLCS on Dec. 14, 2012.