Royal Decree of 21 December 1966 on delimitation of the territorial sea (No. 19)

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE • BURE LIMITS No. 19 - Revised STRAIGHT BASELINES: DENMARK UED BY THE GEOGRAPHEF SEAS This paper is one of a series issued by The Geographer, Dureau of Intelligence and Research of the Department of State. The aim of the series is to set forth the basis for national arrangements for the measurement of the territorial sea or the division of the maritime areas of coastal nations. Intended for background use only, this research document does not represent an official acceptance of the United States Government of the line or lines represented on the charts or, necessarily, of the specific principles involved, if any, in the original drafting of the lines. Additional copies may be requested by mail from The Geographer, Department of State, Washington, D.C. 20520, or by telephone (Area Code 202, 632-2022). LIMITS IN THE SEAS No. 19 (Revised) ~traight Baselines: Denmark necember 21, 1978 I Ut:! l.:rt:!U'::JL-c:1.pner Office of the Geographer Bureau of Intelligence and Research STRAIGHT 131\SELINES: DEl~1ARK The Danish Government promulgated straight baselines by a Royal Decree ot December 21, 1966, which has been m:xhfied by Decree Ho. 189 of April 19, 1978. The text of the 1966 Decree is as follows, with bracketed I,X>rtions indicating those provisions which have been modified by the 1978 decree: ROYAL DECT{EE CN 'IHE DELIMITATI<l~ OF 'IHE TERRI'IDRIAL SEA The delunitation of the territorial waters which consist of tl1e territorial sea and the internal waters shall be governed l;>y the following rules: Section 1, Subsection 1. The territorial sea comprises those areas of the sea which, on the inner side are delimited by tl1e lines referred to in section 4 and which, on the outer side, are delunited by lines drawn in such a manner that the distance from every point on these lines to the nearest point on the inner borderline shall be 3 nautical miles (5,556 metres). Subsection 2. The outer delimitation of the Danish Custans area and the Danish fishing territory is governed by special rules laid down by law. Subsection 3. As far as the waters bordering uI,X>n Sweden and Germany are concerned, the outer limit of the territorial sea shall not go beyond the lines delimiting the internal waters and the territorial seas established by Declaration of January 30, 1932, between Denmark and Sweden concerning the delimitation in the Sound, cf. Executive Order'No. 41 of February 22, 1932, and Executive Order No. 497 of December 21, 1923, concerning the frontier between Denmark and Germany. Section 2. The internal waters oomprise those areas of the sea, such as harbours, harbour entrances, roadsteads, bays, fjords, sounds and 2 belts, which are situated inside the lines referred to in section 4. Section 3. The provisions of section 2, cf. section 4, shall involve no restrictions in the existing right of passage for foreign vessels through those parts of the internal waters in the Sarns!Z> Belt, the Little Belt, the Great Belt, and the Sound, which are normally used for such passage. Section 4. The lines to be used for delimitation of the territorial sea in pursuance of Section l shall be those specified below and in the appended map of the roast-line (low-water mark at mean spring-tide) or straight lines between the following points: (All positions indicated according to the European Datwn System) l. 55°O4'14"N 8°23'3O"E thence a straight line to 2. 55°12'4O"N 8°24 114"£ thence a straight line to 3. 55°19'47"N 8°24'57"E thence a straight line to 4. :>:> 0 26'40"N 8°l8 1 48"E thence a straight line to s. 55°28'26"N 8°17'O5"E thence the ooastline to 6. 56°41'5O"N 8°11'46"E thence a straight line to 7. 56°45'2l"N 8°13'29"E thence the ooastl ine to [ 8. 57°29'45"N 10°3O'll"E [ thence a straight line to The point where the line from NW point ·of Sild to R$Drn¢ Flak W intersects the line delimiting the internal waters between Denmark and Germany. Galgerev (Fan¢ S) S0ren Jessens Sand Skallingen W Har~re Tange NW Agger Tange W Strandby ] Replaced ] 3 [9. s1°30•00 11N 10°36'18"E Holm N of Graesholm J Deleted [ thence a straight line to ] [10. 57°29'10"N 10°37'42"E Hirsholm NE Coast ]Deleted [ thence a straight line to ] 11. 57°28'57"N l0°37'43"E Hirsholm s point thence a straight line to [12. 57°20 'Ol"N 10°32'16"E Saeby Harbour ] Replaced [ thence the roastline to 1 [13. 57°00'16"N 10°20'54"E Hals NE ]Deleted [ thence a straight line to 1 14.- 56°58'23"N 10°20'02"E Korsholm N point thence the roastline to 15. 56°58'04"N 10° 19'44"E thence a straight line to Korsho~ S point 16. 56°57'18"N 10°17'36"E Egense SE thence the roastline to 17. 56°43 107"N 10°20'03"E Alsodde thence a straight line to 18. 56°38'49"N 10°21'38"E Point NE of S¢dringholm thence a straight line to WOOd 19. 56°35'46"N 10°20'35"E Udbyhoj thence the roas tl ine to 20. 56°18'08"N 10°51' 57"E Point S of Katholm WOOd thence a straight line to 21. 56°08'07"N l0°48'43"E Hjelm E-most point thence a straiyht line to 22. 55°56'06"N 10°47'38"E Bosserne E-most point thence a straight line to 23. 55°52'0l"N 10°40'36"E Staalht&j Hage thence the roastl ine to 24. ss 0 4s•ss"N 10°37'22"E Lushage thence a straight line to 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. [37. [ [38. [ 4 55°37 1 16 11N 10°37'04 11 E thence the coastline to 55°28'39"N 10°44'56 11E thence a straight line to 55°24'56"N 10°43'4l"E thence the coastline to 55°17'27"N 10°5l'll"E thence a straight line to 55°09'28"N 10°57'20 11 E thence the coastline to 54°43 1 27 11N 10°41'12 11E thence a straight line to 54°49'04"N 10°2s 107"E thence the coastline to 54°55'12"N 10°14'49"E thence a ·straight line to 54°52'27"N 10°04'02"E thence the ooastline to 54°5l'll"N 9°59'18"E thence a straight line to 54°49 1 13 11N 9°56'30"E Zealand and the islands S of Zealand 56°04'15"N 11°13'19"E thence a straight line to 56°00'4l"N ll 0 16'40"E thence the coastline to 55°58'42"N 11°46'37 11 E thence a straight line to [39. 55°58 136 11N 11°51'18"E Point E of Fyns Hoved Stavreshoved Risinge Hoved Knudshoved Langeland N point Gulstav Klint Vejsnaes Nakke Point S of Vids¢ M¢lle P9)ls Huk Kegnaes E-most end i;x:,int of the line delimiting the internal waters b:t'iv'een Denmark and Germany Sjaellands Rev life­ saving beacon Sjaellands Odde JReplaced ] Korshage ]Replaced l Spodsbjerg ] Deleted 5 l thence the ooastline to ] 40. 56°03'09"N 12°35'37"E Point NW of Kronoorg thence a straight line to 41. 56°03'09"N 12°37'07"E Lag?engrund S seamark thence a straight line to 42. 56°02'38"N 12°37'49"E Point at sea thence a straight line to 43. 56°01'44"N 12°37'49"E Point at sea thence a straight line to 44. 56°01'00"N 12°36'46"E Point at sea thence a straight line to 45. 56°0l'OO"N 12°36'04"E Point NE of Snek.kersten thence the ooastline to 46. 55°47'17"N 12°35'52"E Taarbaek Haroour thence a straight line to 47. 55°47'07"N 12°40'20"E Taarbaek Rev thence a straight line to 48. 55°41' 57"N 12°50'49"E Saltholrn NE (point thence a straight line to at sea) 49. 55°40'24"N 12°46' lO"E Saltholrn N point thence the ooastline to 50. 55°40'15"N 12°46'36"E Point on Saltholm thence a straight line to 51. 55°37'16"N 12°48'58"E ·Svanekla:g;>er N thence a straight line to 52. 55°36'04"N 12°49'25"E ~ndre Flint thence a straight line to 53. 55°36 119 11N 12°47'07"E Holm s of Sal tholm thence a straight line to 54. 55°36'24"N 12°46'28"E Saltholrn S p::>int thence a straight line to 6 55. 55°32'13"N 12°42'46"E Drogden Lighthouse thence a straight line to 56. 55°30'58"N 12°35'36"E Aflandshage black thence a straight line to double broom 57. 55°19'5l"N 12°27'23"E Mandehoved thence the coastline to 58. 55°17'30"N 12°27'23"E Stevns thence a straight line to 59. 55°00'3l"N 12°31'22"E Hellehavn Nakke thence the coastline to 60. 54°56'44"N 12°32'19"E Point SW of M¢n thence a straight line to Lighthouse 61. 54°50'08"N 12°10'0l"E Hestehoved thence a straight line to 62. 54°33'39"N 11°58'29"E Gedser Odde SE thence· the coastline to 63. 54°33'35"N 11°58'20"£ Gedser Odde s thence a straight line to 64. 54°33 1 3811N ll0 52'25"E R¢dsand S thence a straight line to 65. 54°35'38"N 11°30'56"E Hyllekrog thence·the coastline to 66. 54°50'12"N 10°57'36"E Albuen thence a straight line to 67. 54°53'19"N 11 °01 •oo"E Point NW of Taars thence the coastline to 68. 54°54'48"N 11°01'38"E Point SW of Korsnakke thence a straight line to 69. 55°09'37"N 11°08'03"E Qn~ W point thence a straight line to 70. 55°20 'Sl"N 11°05'37"E Halsskov thence a straight line to 7 71. 55°28'29"N ll 0 04'28"E Musholm thence a straight line to 72. 55°30'57"N 11°04'55"E Reersp, thence a straight line to 73. 55°39'50"N 10°56'06"E Asnaes thence a straight line to 74. 55°44'40"N 10°52'12"E F¢snaes thence a straight line to 75. 55°53'll"N 11°04'53"E Seje115 N point thence a straight line to 36. 56°04'15"N 11 °13 '19"E Sjaellands Rev life-saving beaoon Laeso 76. 57°21'52"N 10°56'00"E Nordre R¢nner thence a straight line to 77. 57°19'27"N 11°11'50"E Syrodde thence the ooastline to 78. 57°17'53"N 11°11'24"E Bl!l)den Hale thence a straight line to 79. 57°12'2l"N 11°02'09"£ Hornfisker~n SE thence the ooastline to 80. 57°12'00"N 10°59 153"£ Hornfisker.¢n SW thence a straight line to 81. 57°14'3l"N 10°53 I 53"E Sfi,nder Nyland thence a straight line to 82. 57°15'JO"N l0°52'15"E Laes~ W-most p:::>int thence a straight line to 83. 57°21'2l"N 10°54'12"E Bordfeld thence a straight line to 76. 57°21'52"N l0°56'00"E Nordre FJzSnner Christians~ 84. 55°19'53"N 15°10'3l"E Rock N of Tat (W end} thence the ooas tl ine to 8 85. 55°19 1 5211N 15°10 1 33"E Rock N of Tat thence a straight line to (E end) 86. 55°19'27"N 15°11'3l"E Rock N of Christianso thence a straight line to 87. 55°19'25"N 15°11'34"E Christians!,lJ NE thence a straight line to 88. 55°19'09"N 15°11'56"E ¢sterskaer NE thence a straight line to 89. 55°19 1 07 11N 15°11 1 55"E ,l)sterskaer SE thence a straight line to 90. 55°19'06"N 15°11'52"E ¢sterskaer SW thence a straight line to 91. 55°19'04"N 15°11'20"E Christians~ S thence a strai9ht line to 92. 55°19'2S"N 15°10'36"E Graesholm SW thence a straight line to 93. 55°19 1 30 11N 15°10'32"E Graesholm W thence a straight line to 94. 55°19'48"N 15°10'30"E Rocks of Tat thence a straight line to 95. 55°19'50"N 15°10'30"E Rock S of Tat thence a straight line to 96. 55° 19 'Sl"N 15°10'30":E Tat W thence a straight line to 84. 55°19'53"N 15°10'3l"E Rock N of Tat (Wend) oone at Amalienl:::ocg on December 21, 1966. Frederik R L.S Victor Gram 9 The supplemental order :m::x:lifying the original system of straight baselines for Denmark is as follows: DECREE ID. 189 OF APRIL 19, 1978 THE DELIMITATION OF 'IHE TERRI'IORIAL SEA WE, MARGRETHE 'IliE SECXND, BY 'IHE GRACE Or' GOD QUEEN OF DENMARK, make known by these presents: As from May 1, 1978, Section 4 of the Royal Decree No. 437 of Decernber 21, 1966 on the Delimitation of the Territorial Sea iR amended as follows: 1. No. 8) deleted and replaced by: "57°44'43"N 10°39'26"E •••••• lirenen thence a straight line to" 2. No. 9) deleted. 3. No. 10) deleted. 4. No. 12) deleted and replaced by: 11 57° 13 '45 "U 10°33 '12"E ••••.• Holm off Lyngsa thence a straight line to" 5. No. 13) deleted. 6. No. 37) deleted and replaced by: "56°12'22"N 11°40'34"E ••••• Hesselo NW-reef thence a straight line to" 7. No. 38) deleted and replaced by: "56°07'49"N 12°18'43"E ••••• Gilleleje Haroour pier thence the coastline to" 8. No. 39) deleted. Done at Amalienoorg, April 19, 1978 Under Our Royal Hand and Seal (signed) MARGRETHE R. (countersigned) Poul Sogaard 10 ANALYSIS The Danish straight baseline decree is aimed at accomplishing three separate purJX)ses. The straight baselines a) close certain bays and river mouths; b) tie certain "fringing islands" to the mainland; and c) enclose certain closely related islands within single baseline systems utilizing one major island as mainland. One of the last-named, Christians¢, is an extremely small series of rocks and islets detached from the mo.inland of Denrnark. Because these latter straight baselines enclose a very small area, they have not teen shown oo the attached map. They are, ha,.,ever, analyzed in the following table: Point Length in n.m. Conments Sector Total JUTLAND l - 2 8.7 The initial point marks the ( internal waters} terminus of the Danish-German land boundary. The baseline ex tends northward to a spit, a distance of approximately 2.5 nautical miles from RIZ'Jl'l\¢ and 13 nautical miles from Jutland. The SBL does not deviate from the gen eral direction of the coast. 2 - 3 7.2 The same geographic relationships apply. Point 3 is the sea ward point of a spit extending from Fan,. 3 - 4 7.75 The SBL parallels Fan¢, about 1.25 n.m. distant, to oonnect with a second low-tide spit. Point 4 - 5 6 - 7 8 - 11 11 - 12 12 - 14 14 - 15 15 - 16 17 - 18 18 - 19 11 Length in n.m. Sector Total 2.2 3.6 15.83 15.43 17.00 • 1 l. 7 4.6 . 3.1 25.85 50.06 Conments The SBL joins Jutland, connecting the mud-flat rimmed, fringing islands with the mainland. At low tide,very little water surface exists shoreward ,of the SBL •. The SBL closes the entrance of Limfjorden, a deeply penetrating waterway which, in effect, makes northern Denmark an·island. The system, from new p::>int 8 (the Skaw, the northern point of Denmark) , extends roughly parallel to the coast to a small group of islets (utilized in the previous system) and thence to the islet of Holm situated near the mainland. The system then joins with the following: The SBL from :i:x>ints 14 throl.YJh 16 closes the eastern entrance of the Limfjorden (see 6-7 above) • The deviation from the general.direction of the roast is slight. The southern element of this SBL closes the Mariager Fjord and the Randers Fjord • Point 20 - 21 21 - 22 22 - 23 24 - 25 26 - 27 28 - 29 30 - 31 32 - 33 34 - 35 12 Length in n.m. Sector Total 10.2 12.0 5.6 8.6 3.8 8.6 10.65 6.7 2.55 7.7 66.15 2.55 Comnents Both fjords are Juri­ dical bays; .the straight baselines are within 8° of general trend from the coast. The straight base­ lines from fX)int 20, on the east cape of Jutland, through fX)int 33 serve to tie the fringing islands of Hjelm, Bosserne, Samsszi, Fyn, Lange­ land, and Aer¢ to the mainland of Jutland. The islands, which are aligned generally parallel to the Jut­ land ooast, screen the :f)E!ninsula for approximately 73 nautical miles of their 80 nautical miles' extent. In the south, between points 30 and 33, the straight base­ lines are roughly perpendicular to tl1e trend of the Jutland coast, as influenced by the distribution of islands. The base­ line system 1.1.':les ooastal portions of the major islands of Sams¢, Fyn, Langeland, and Aerp, as baselines. The segment·encloses the Danish fX)rtion of the Flensborg Fjord. The terminal p:>int marks the eastern limit of Danish internal waters on the 13 Point Length in n.rn. Sector Total 'l'otal 155.91 SJAELI..AlID 36 - 37 17.28 37 - 38 21.81 39.08 Comnents Danish-German land border. The straight oase­ lines from p:>int 36 to i;:x::,int 75 serve to a) delineate the roadsteads for Copen­ hagen and Helsing¢r harbors and b) tie the adjacent islands of Hessei,, I.Dlland, Falster, and M¢n to the main island of Sjaelland; in effect, an insular: mainland is applied. The result of the appli­ cation, however, serves to exclude the irni;:x::,rtant passageway of the Store Baelt from the inland waters of Denmark. A narrow passage of territorial sea is maintained. These straight baselines, as a result, bear no relation to the gen­ eral trend of the mainland ooast of continental Denmark. However, by utilizing the major island of Sjaelland as the mainland, the system conforms to this obligation. 14 Point Length in n.m. Sector Total 40 - 41 .78 41 - 42 .59 42 - 43 .98 43 - 44 .89 44 - 45 46 - 47 47 - 48 48 - 49 50 - 51 51 - 52 52 - 53 • 48 2.55 7.85 2.1 3.35 1.12 1.36 53 - 54 .48 54 - 55 4.65 55 - 56 4.2 56 - 57 58 - 59 60 - 61 61 - 62 63 - 64 12.1 17 .2 14.45 17.75 3.4 3.72 39.76 17.2 Comnents Points 40 to 45 serve to outline the road­ stead for Helsingsz,r. At its maximum ex­ tent, the roadstead is approximately .6 n.m. from the shore­ line • Points 46 through 56 define the limits of Copenhagen roa.dstead. The maximum distance from the nearest land is awroximately 5 nautical miles, north of Saltholm (island). Point 48 is on the Swedish-Danish boundary tln::ough the Sound. Closes K0ge Bugt, a juridical bay. Closes Fakse Bugt, a juridical bay. Closes Hjelm Bugt, not a juridical bay. Encloses a coastal indentation of .l:''alster. Points 63 to 65 close off a coastal indentation formed by Falster and Lolland and serves to tie the islands together. The Point 64 - 65 66 - 67 68 - 69 69 - 70 70 - 71 71 - 72 72 - 73 73 - 74 74 - 75 75 - 36 15 Length in n.rn. Sector Total 12.7 3.85 15.2 11.4 7.7 2.5 10.21 5.3 13.70 10.35 48.30 3.85 26.6 10.2 Comnents indentation is not a bay. Closes an un­ named juridical bay m Lolland. Serves with the next segment to bind Lolland to Sjaelland and to enclose a large body of water­ Srnaalarrrls Far­ vandet-which, while serni-cir­ c ular, is not legally a bay. Geographically, the water is a sound. Encloses Musholrn Bugt, which is not a juridical bay, in oornbin­ a tion with segment 71-72. Encloses Jarnner­ land Bugt, which is not a juridi­ cal bay. Closes Kalunborg Fjord, a juri­ dical bay. The straight baseline 75-36 encloses a double­ rnouthed, baylike water 1:x:xiy. The separate rrouths 16 Point Length in n.m. Sector Total 76 - 77 78 - 79 80 - 81 81 - 82 82 - 83 83 - 76 CHRIS'l'IANc¢ Total 9.1 7.55 4.15 1.20 6.1 1.1 Total 85 - 86 1.310 meters 86 - 87 70m 87 - 88 702m 88 - 89 45m 89 - 90 60m 90 - 91 562m 91 - 92 940m 39.56 228.27 29.20 Comnents are formed by the island of Sejer¢, situated roughly in the center. The straight baselines from 76 to 83 serve to tie the island of Laes¢' to its adjacent rocks and islets. In two instances, the shore of Laes¢ forms the baseline ( 81 82 and 77-78). Laes¢ is situ­ ated 10 miles from the Jutland shore. The straight baselines be­ tween points 84 and 96 encircle the Christians¢ group of islets and rocks. The group is very small; the dis­ tances of the straight base­ lines are in meters and not in nautical 17 Point Len<Jth in n.m. Corrments Sector Total 92 - 93 170m miles. At the end of group, the meters are 93 - 94 545m converted to nautical miles in the total. 94 - 95 67m Christians¢ is situated between 55°19'05" and 95 - 96 65m 55°19'54" North and 15°10'18" and 15°11'54" 96 - 84 30m East, in the Baltic Sea adjacent to Bornholm Island. Total 4,566m 2.47 Denmark Total 415.85 SUMMARY The Danish straight baselines oomprise 70 lines alter nating with nearly two dozen normal coastline segments. The total length of the straight baselines is 415.85 nautical miles. The average SBL length is 5.83 nautical miles if the small Christians¢ lines are included or 6.99 nautical miles if they are excluded. The longest SBL measures 21. 81 nautical miles between points 37 and 38. The shortest, in the Christians~ group, measures a mere 30 meters. Elsewhere, the shortest segment is aPProximately .1 nautical miles long. The effect of the 1978 rev1s1on of the original straight baseline system is tv.Ufold: 1) the northeastern coastal area of Jutland is enclosed within a single system from the Skaw, the northeastern point of Denmark, to south of the Lim Fjord and 2) the island of Hesselo is included within the Sjaelland system. Denmark has applied an insular mainland concept in three instances: a) Sjaelland, b) Laes~, and c) Christians¢. In the case of Sjaelland, tl1e effect is to leave the Store Baelt shipping passage as territorial waters rather than to include it within the internal waters of tl1e state. Both Laes¢ and Christians¢ are too far removed frorn tl1e mainland to be included within the Jutland strai':}ht baseline system. Denmark has signed and ratified the Geneva Convention on the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous ~one. 58' 57• 56° 55' 54' 53' 52' 7' "c, II fl t<i F. Source of Data: Office of the Geographer, Departme'nt of State From H.O. 4840, 18th Edition, Nov, 1945; R•vls♦d 11/21/66 8' 9' R M 10' A N y Denmark Straight Baselines (Revised) 11' ■QUNO,\AI' At:PAr&rN't,11,.TION ,. NCIT M~<"'r«'t'-AII V .OlJHt{HH1'J.T<VI' 12' 53' 52'