Foreign Relations of the United States, 1981–1988, Volume XLI, Global Issues II

150. Memorandum From Michael A. Guhin of the National Security Council Staff to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Clark)¹

Washington, April 6, 1982

SUBJECT

• SIG Meeting on Law of the Sea Negotiations

Buckley chaired the SIG meeting yesterday evening on the Law of the Sea negotiations. State noted that we are at a critical stage. If we do not show some flexibility today² in our proposals, the conference will adopt a convention without us and without several improvements that now seem possible. (Haig’s assessment before the SIG meeting is at Tab I.)³ All interested agencies, except Interior and OPD, agreed that:

• We should not insist on eliminating the production ceiling but should try to relax it.

• We should not insist on affirmative voting power but should enhance our blocking power under the convention.

• We should not spend much leverage now on the terms and conditions for financing the international mining entity but should seek to work these out in the preparation of the rules and regulations that would follow the conference work on the convention.

• These areas were covered in the delegation’s instructions but are not key to the President’s objectives, which are still mandatory.

All agencies justifiably disagreed with State’s proposal that we accept the current provisions on benefit sharing for liberation movements; State agreed that we need to change them.

OPD and Interior expressed concern about the aggregate effect of these changes and what they see as the slippery slope ahead. They did not, however, support letting the conference go ahead without us and without any real improvements in the treaty, and that is basically the choice. I do not believe these concerns warrant an NSC meeting on the matter.

State’s report on the SIG should be here later.⁴ You may wish to draw on the above in briefing the President.

1. Source: Reagan Library, Meese Files, Law of the Sea. Secret. Sent for information.
2. An unknown hand added a carat and wrote “today” between “flexibilty” and “in.”
3. Attached, printed in Document 149.
4. A summary of conclusions from an April 5 meeting was sent to Senior Interagency Group No. 8 under an April 8 covering memorandum from Bremer. (Department of State, Marine Law and Policy Division, Subject and Country Files, Law of the Sea, 1982–1983, Lot 85D105, LOS–S/IG)