Summary

The right of innocent passage is applicable to all foreign vessels without prior notice or requesting permission. The provision of the innocent passage ensuring the freedom of seas in the 1982 Convention of the Law of the Sea could be seen as a part of a general agreement according to which major maritime nations were willing to establish the breadth of their territorial sea up to a limit not exceeding 12 nautical miles, as laid down in Article 3 of the convention.

If there were no international rules ensuring free passage generally recognised and applied by countries, major international seaways would be closed as a result of such expansion (first and foremost, in gulfs) or passage would be substantially limited. Therefore, Estonia too is required to ensure uniform application of international maritime law and, in this connection, it has the obligation to lay down national rules, including the right of innocent passage, so that their compatibility with the Convention of the Law of the Sea is ensured.

First, the article gives an overview about the evolution of maritime zones in international maritime law. Besides regulation of new maritime zones established under the convention, a critical assessment of the current Estonian legal framework concerning its internal waters and the territorial sea is given. Specifically, the right of innocent passage through Estonia’s territorial sea is analysed, focusing on the compatibility of Estonia’s legal framework applicable to foreign military vessels with the requirements of innocent passage as laid down in the convention.