Book contents
- Submarines in International Law
- Cambridge Studies in International and Comparative Law: 197
- Submarines in International Law
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Acknowledgements
- Table of Cases
- Table of Treaties
- Abbreviations
- 1 Introducing Submarines in International Law
- Part I A Legal History of Submarines
- 2 The Rise of the Submarine: Belligerency, Neutrality and Emerging Laws of Passage in World War I
- 3 Regulating Submarines in the Inter-war Period from Versailles (1919) to The Hague (1930)
- 4 The Impact of the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II
- 5 The Post-war Settlement, the Early Cold War and the 1958 Law of the Sea Conventions
- 6 To UNCLOS and Beyond: Strategic Domination in Submarine Regulation
- Part II Contemporary International Law of Submarines
- Index
- Cambridge Studies in International and Comparative Law
4 - The Impact of the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II
from Part I - A Legal History of Submarines
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 06 April 2026
Book contents
- Submarines in International Law
- Cambridge Studies in International and Comparative Law: 197
- Submarines in International Law
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Acknowledgements
- Table of Cases
- Table of Treaties
- Abbreviations
- 1 Introducing Submarines in International Law
- Part I A Legal History of Submarines
- 2 The Rise of the Submarine: Belligerency, Neutrality and Emerging Laws of Passage in World War I
- 3 Regulating Submarines in the Inter-war Period from Versailles (1919) to The Hague (1930)
- 4 The Impact of the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II
- 5 The Post-war Settlement, the Early Cold War and the 1958 Law of the Sea Conventions
- 6 To UNCLOS and Beyond: Strategic Domination in Submarine Regulation
- Part II Contemporary International Law of Submarines
- Index
- Cambridge Studies in International and Comparative Law
Summary
This chapter examines legal developments in submarine regulation taking into account the political context existing prior to World War II, including tensions in the Pacific with Japan’s aggression against China. Notably, States adopted the 1936 London Protocol on Submarine Warfare seeking to align requirements for submarines with obligations imposed on surface warships. Tensions in the 1930s also prompted Turkey to initiate a revision of the legal regime governing the Turkish Straits, leading to the Montreux Convention and the near complete prohibition of submarine passage in these waters. With the outbreak of World War II and unrestricted submarine warfare, questions emerged as to the viability of rules set out in the 1936 London Protocol. States also moved to revise laws of neutrality with more targeted consideration of submarines. The chapter thus reflects ongoing legal developments concerning navigational rights of submarines in territorial waters and the regulation of submarines during armed conflict.
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- Submarines in International Law , pp. 131 - 166Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2026
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