detention if the donating State agrees to pay for salvage services rendered on their behalf. The U.S. delegation submitted the Article 26 provision at the request of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Agency for International Development because of recent cases in which humanitarian cargoes have been delayed or seized by salvors when salvage services had been rendered en route. Article 27 stipulates that States will encourage, but does not require, the publication of arbitral awards made in salvage cases. Chapter V, Articles 28-34, contains final clauses relating to consent to be bound, entry into force, reservations, denunciation, revision and amendment, depositary, and authentic languages. Article 29 provides that the Convention enters into force one year after fifteen States have expressed their consent to be bound. Article 30, on reservations, permits States to elect to not apply the provisions of the Convention: (a) when the salvage operation takes place in internal waters and all vessels involved are of inland navigation; (b) when the salvage operations take place in internal waters and no vessel is involved; (c) when all interested parties are nationals of that State; (d) when the property involved is maritime cultural property of prehistoric, archeological or historic interest and is situated on the sea-bed. It is recommended that no reservations be made because we believe the salvage rules should continue to be applied throughout all navigable waters of the United States. Article 32 provides that the Convention may be revised or amended by a conference of States Parties. Consistent with IMO practice and the international law of treaties, no revision or amendment will enter into force for a State without the express consent of the State. The current standard form contract, Lloyds Open Form 90, generally used for the conduct of marine salvage services, now includes the environmental incentive and fully incorporates the principles of the 1989 Salvage Convention. Seventeen States signed the Convention during the year in which it was open for signature; to date, two (Nigeria and Egypt) have expressed their consent to be bound. Many nations, including most European nations, expect to ratify within the next year. Expeditious ratification is highly desirable and in the best interests of the United States. The 1989 environmental assessment of the draft Convention concluded that it will have no significant detrimental impacts, that all of the projected environmental impacts are positive, and that they are expected to be of substantial benefit to the marine environment in the United States and worldwide. These conclusions are equally applicable to the Convention as adopted by the Conference. The Department of State and the U.S. Coast Guard join in recommending that the International Convention on Salvage, 1989, be transmitted to the Senate as soon as possible for its advice and consent to ratification. Respectfully submitted, LAWRENCE S. EAGLEBURGER. الاتفاقية الدولية للانقاذ ، لعام 1989 1989年国际救助公约 INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION ON SALVAGE, 1989 CONVENTION INTERNATIONALE DE 1989 SUR L'ASSISTANCE МЕЖДУНАРОДНАЯ КОНВЕНЦИЯ О СПАСАНИИ 1989 ГОДА CONVENIO INTERNACIONAL SOBRE SALVAMENTO MARITIMO, 1989 INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION ON SALVAGE, 1989 THE STATES PARTIES TO THE PRESENT CONVENTION, RECOGNIZING the desirability of determining by agreement uniform international rules regarding salvage operations, NOTING that substantial developments, in particular the increased concern for the protection of the environment, have demonstrated the need to review the international rules presently contained in the Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules of Law relating to Assistance and Salvage at Sea, done at Brussels, 23 September 1910, CONSCIOUS of the major contribution which efficient and timely salvage operations can make to the safety of vessels and other property in danger and to the protection of the environment, CONVINCED of the need to ensure that adequate incentives are available to persons who undertake salvage operations in respect of vessels and other property in danger, HAVE AGREED as follows: (a) Salvage operation means any act or activity undertaken to assist a (b) Vessel means any ship or craft, or any structure capable of navigation. (c) (d) Property means any property not permanently and intentionally attached to the shoreline and includes freight at risk. Damage to the environment means substantial physical damage to human (e) Payment means any reward, remuneration or compensation due under this Convention. (f) Organization means the International Maritime Organization. (g) Secretary-General means the Secretary-General of the Organization. Article 2 Application of the Convention This Convention shall apply whenever judicial or arbitral proceedings relating to matters dealt with in this Convention are brought in a State Party. |