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6. Military activities, including exercises and intelligence gathering should not be carried out in a confined body of water such as in straits used for international navigation or in enclosed or semi enclosed seas. It should be remembered that military activities, exercises, and intelligence gathering as well as hydrographic surveys should not be carried out within 12 miles of territorial sea as stipulated in Article 19 (2) of UNCLOS 1982 since those activities would violate the principles of ‘innocent passage’ through the territorial sea.
7. No military exercises and intelligence gathering activities in the EEZ of other countries should use weapon exercises using live ammunition or directed against the coastal states. Neither the activities should be exercised in areas declared by the coastal states as ‘restricted areas’, either for security, economic, or hydrographical reasons. The restricted areas for security reasons should be limited for a certain period when the coastal state itself is conducting its own military exercises in the area; while restricted areas for economic reasons may have a longer period of application, particularly if it involves the exploitation of the resources of the area, either in fisheries or in mineral resources of the continental shelf. Restricted areas for hydrographical reasons may be relatively permanent in view of the limited possibilities for navigation in that area, such as in the ‘dangerous grounds’ in the South China Sea where navigational charts, hydrographical and environmental data have not been very extensive.
8. Foreign warships or aircraft, including nuclear vessels, intending to carry out military exercises or a war-gaming in the EEZ of other countries should as far as possible notify the coastal state, albeit ‘quietly’ or ‘behind the scenes’, in order to avoid misunderstanding and if possible and as necessary invite the observers from the coastal state to witness the exercises or the war-gaming. This is helpful in order to eliminate the possible perception of hostility.
9. Military activities, exercises and intelligence gathering in the EEZ of other countries should not cause pollution or negatively affect marine environment and marine living resources, e.g. fisheries and mammals (cetaceans) which may be adversely affected by active sonar. Negligence in this matter could cause international responsibility and liability for compensation damage.
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