Culmination of Law

Culmination of Law

International legal challenges to the immunity of warships and pollution control of the Persian Gulf marine environment

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
1 Assistant Professor of Public International Law, Department of Criminal Law and Criminology, Faculty of Law and Political Science, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran
2 The LL. M student of public International Law, faculty of Law and Political science, Ferdowsi university of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran
Abstract
Despite of many documents at international and regional conventions in the field of marine environment pollution control, the presence of warships in the sea (in peacetime) prevents the control of marine environment pollution. There are a significant number of warships in the Persian Gulf, and some of these ships cause more pollution than a city with a significant population. Garbage dumping in the sea and sonar are types of pollutants that directly and indirectly harm the marine environment. The pollution caused by the warships has challenged the activities of the marine environmental pollution control conventions. In this research, a descriptive analytical method is used using library and internet resources. Although international conventions strive to protect the marine environment, warships with the immunity contained in Articles 32 and 236 of the Convention on the Law of the Sea (1982) have always exposed the marine environment to pollution, which in practice It will prevent the implementation of these conventions. The findings show that although warships are immune from attack and have immunity according to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, this immunity cannot prevent the payment of related costs based on international civil liability. Therefore, warships should pay the damages caused by marine pollution with a specific mechanism
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Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 12 October 2025