Karan H. (Executive), Demir İ., Ergüven N. S.
TUBITAK Project, 2020 - 2022
Summary
Increasing
energy deficits and advances in technology worldwide led states and
international energy companies to seek energy source exploration in offshore
areas as an alternative to land energy reserves. As a result of the studies,
it has been determined that the seas are rather rich in energy reserves. The
availability of energy resources in the seas has prompted states to expand
their maritime jurisdictions and their sovereign rights in these areas. In
this respect, the interest in the energy resources that are of strategic importance
in the world has moved away from the land and shifted to the sea areas and
caused the emergence of sea energy law sui
generis in the field of law. The determination and limitation of the
jurisdiction of states on energy resources in the world's seas has been
attempted to be determined by international conventions and multilateral
agreements. Nevertheless, in many areas that have offshore energy sources,
including the Eastern Mediterranean, the ultimate boundaries of the sea areas
of coastal states have not been determined. For this reason, the unilateral
claims of sovereignty of the states in disputed maritime areas, especially in
fields where hydrocarbon resources are intense, cause conflicts. Preventing
this situation will be possible by conducting qualified studies on the legal
limitation and determination of maritime jurisdictions. Lack of Turkey's
legal studies in the eastern Mediterranean, as the most powerful country in
the region, makes the political, military and technical operations questionable
in terms of international law. With this Project, it is primarily aimed to
investigate the sovereign rights of Turkey in Turkey's coastal areas. In
addition to determination the limits and scope of the sovereignty of the
states in international law on the coastal areas, the fair distribution of
resources in the areas beyond national jurisdiction is regulated in the
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 1982. There have not been
enough studies conducted on this area in Turkey, which is considered as the
common heritage of mankind. Fortunately, scientific and technical activities
related to this field, in recent years, including a portion of the Arctic and
parts of Antarctic have started execution in Turkey. However, it has been
observed that there is a lack of legal work to ensure that these studies are
carried out on a legitimate basis. Therefore, within the scope of the
project, it is aimed to investigate the sovereign rights over energy
resources in the areas beyond national jurisdiction. As
a result of conducted researches, neither Turkey's current maritime
jurisdiction areas nor the areas beyond national jurisdiction have a
sufficient and qualified litterateur research about them. Within the scope of
the project, it is aimed that domestic and international litterateur research
is made, data is collected, data expert interviews are made, and a field
research on comparative and international law perspectives is made for the
elimination of the lack of litterateur in Turkey.
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