Quote:
Originally Posted by Hugh
Serious question - how would the boats (mainly inflatables) be "pushed back"?
What physical mechanism would be employed without causing multiple drownings, which would breach Article 98 of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and could put the Sailors on the ships doing the "pushing back" at risk of prosecution for murder?
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Article 98 doesn’t apply unless the boats are in distress.
Article 95 grants immunity to British naval vessels.
Article 25 specifically gives the coastal state the right to prevent passage into its territorial waters that is not innocent.
There is nothing illegal in refusing a boat to enter U.K. territorial waters. If the U.K. coast guard or navy picks up a small boat the passengers should just be taken directly back to the coastal state from where they departed.