Hrvatsko tjesnaci između Bosne i Hercegovine i otvorenoga mora
Croatian straits between Bosnia and Herzegovina and high seas

Summary/Abstract: Croatia has an intention to build a land – Pelješac bridge to connect its southeasternmost territory with other parts of the country. The bridge would span the sea route to the internal waters and the territorial sea of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Initially, Croatia proposed the bridge height of 35 m. Bosnia and Herzegovina did not consent to this proposal, because the bridge of this height would practically disable the exercise of the right of innocent passage of Bosnian-Herzegovinian and foreign vessels to and from the high seas to the sea under the sovereignty of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Since international law (1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea) guarantees innocent passage through passages used for international navigation – and the Croatian passages belong to this group, whose sea-lane from and to the high seas begins at the Bosnian-Herzegovinian port Neum – the two countries have begun negotiating on the bridge height. The experts from either country have agreed that the bridge height of 55 m enables passage to vessels whose navigation through the mentioned passages may reasonably be expected in the future. The Croatian Government has given its consent to this height, while the consent of the Government of Bosnia-Herzegovina is yet to be expected.

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