Making Sense of Portugal’s Baselines around the Archipelagos of Madeira and the Azores

Abstract Mid-ocean or off-lying archipelagos of non-archipelagic States are not addressed by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea ( LOSC ), the correct understanding being that this is not a lacunae and that these archipelagos cannot be subject to the archipelagic regime. Nevertheless, some States have drawn archipelagic baselines surrounding such archipelagos, despite objections by other States. One example of such contradictory State practice is that of Portugal, albeit improperly mentioned by both claiming and opposing States. Portugal has no archipelagic claim and should not constitute supporting evidence (of the formation) of a rule of customary international law allowing non-archipelagic States to draw archipelagic baselines around mid-ocean or off-lying archipelagos. Moreover, Portugal’s pre- LOSC baselines around Madeira and the Azores are inconsistent with the Convention and Portugal’s Constitution and need to be sorted. This article examines Portugal’s baselines around Madeira and the Azores in an attempt to clarify the matter.