Innocent passage —past and present

The regime of innocent passage was developed to accommodate conflicting State interests in the territorial sea. Security and, more recently, environmental interests of coastal States, are opposed to the interests of maritime States in minimizing interference with navigation. This article discusses the regime of innocent passage in international law through the analysis of relevant treaty rules, including recent developments at IMO, and state practice. Specific attention is given to passage by warships and to coastal state jurisdiction over pollution by vessels in general and over ships carrying hazardous cargoes in particular.