The rules for defining the legal status of unmanned vessels in rights protection and law enforcement

Unmanned vessels have become a key tool for maritime rights protection and law enforcement. As the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea does not clearly define their legal status in such activities, there main doctrines have emerged: the warship doctrine based on the control theory, the military device doctrine based on the functional theory, and the ship doctrine based on the navigation competency theory. Among these, the ship doctrine rooted in the navigation competency theory is more consistent with the principles of treaty interpretation and the spirit of international law. However, the application of this theory face three challenges. Firstly, the algorithmic control struggles to meet the equivalent standards. Secondly, the algorithmic black box undermines the principle of balance of interests. Thirdly, the human-machine collaboration breaks the principle of unity of power and responsibility. To overcome these difficulties, rules should be developed across three dimensions: technical standards, operational mechanisms, and liability attribution. Specifically, differentiated equivalence standards should be established, algorithmic rules for balancing interests should be set up, and liability rules for law enforcement activities should be improved. In this way, this kind of new tool can better safeguard maritime order.