On the 11 June 2020 Singapore and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) signed the Model Agreement: Agreement for the provision of facilities for the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea / a Chamber of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea to sit or otherwise exercise its functions in the Republic of Singapore in [case name]. The Model Agreement establishes the terms and conditions under which the Singapore government shall provide appropriate facilities for the Tribunal, or a Chamber of the Tribunal, to sit or otherwise exercise its functions in Singapore (art. 2).
The Model Agreement enables ITLOS to implement Article 1(3) of UNCLOS Annex VI, whereby the Tribunal may sit and exercise its functions outside of Hamburg (Germany) whenever it considers this desirable. Consultations concerning Singapore as a seat for the Tribunal began in 2007, resulting in the 2015 Joint Declaration Signed between Ministry of Law and President of the Tribunal (2). Negotiations on the terms of the Model Agreement, as per Article 7 of the Agreement on the Privileges and Immunities of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, concluded in October 2019.
For more information see the Model Agreement, the Model Annex and the Joint Press Release (ITLOS/Press 239); Joint Press Release (ITLOS/Press 303).
De Maribus 