This book discusses contemporary challenges within the law of the sea, a domain of international law extensively codified in United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Given the considerable time elapsed since the convention’s adoption and nearly three decades of its implementation, the book analyses the interplay and influence of its provisions on international customary law, as well as to identify issues arising from its application. The book explores and discusses crucial aspects of the law of the sea, addressing challenges and future perspectives related to UNCLOS provisions, such as the delimitation of maritime areas, maritime security, safety, environmental protection, and the implications of advancing technologies, particularly in the realm of unmanned vessels. Additionally, the book delves into recent maritime legal challenges arising from the conflict in Ukraine and the global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The book will be of interest to students and scholars in the field of the law of the sea, international relations and international law.

The Open Access version of this book, available at http://www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives (CC-BY-NC-ND) 4.0 license.

Tomasz Kamiński (University of Warsaw) – PhD, Dr. Hab. Iur. Associated Professor at Department of Public International Law, Faculty of Law and Administration, University of Warsaw and at Faculty of Security, Logistics and Management, Military University of Technology. Author of numerous publications in the field of international law, considering, inter alia: law of the sea, diplomatic law and law of treaties. Member of ILA Committee on Submarine Cables and Pipelines under International Law. Member of the Polish Academy of Science Committee on Maritime Law and of the Legal Advisory Committee to MOFA of the Republic of Poland.

Karol Karski (University of Warsaw) – PhD, Dr. Hab. Iur., Full Professor of Law. Head of the Department of Public International Law at the Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Warsaw. Member of the Committee on Legal Sciences of the Polish Academy of Sciences. Representative of Poland during the 1st, 2nd and 3rd part of the 4th session of the ISA (Kingston and New York, 1998). Author of over 160 publications in the field of international law, including the international law of the sea. Former Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland.