Exclusive Economic Zone

What Is an Exclusive Economic Zone?

An Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is a sea zone established by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), giving coastal states sovereign rights to explore, exploit, conserve, and manage marine resources within 200 nautical miles from their shoreline. The exclusive economic zone is one of the most critical legal frameworks in maritime governance, impacting everything from fishing rights to security patrols. For governments, it ties directly to national sovereignty and maritime security; for commercial actors, it determines vessel routing, compliance obligations, and operational risk.

Where Does the Exclusive Economic Zone Apply?

The EEZ extends up to 200 nautical miles (370 kilometers) from a coastal state’s baseline, typically defined as its low-water line. Within this maritime boundary, the coastal nation has exclusive rights to explore, exploit, conserve, and manage both living and non-living resources. 

This includes access to natural resources such as fisheries and seabed minerals, the right to produce energy through wind, oil, or gas platforms, and jurisdiction over environmental protection and marine scientific research. 

While the EEZ does not grant full sovereignty in the way territorial waters do (which extend only 12 nautical miles), it does provide coastal states with broad control over economic and scientific activities. 

Why Does the Exclusive Economic Zone Matter for Governments?

For nation-states, EEZs are deeply tied to national sovereignty and regional influence. A government’s ability to enforce its rights within its EEZ supports maritime law enforcement, defense strategy, and resource control. These zones offer critical strategic advantages, including: 

• Sovereignty extension: nations secure rights to offshore oil, gas, fisheries, and minerals
• Security enforcement: allows monitoring and deterring foreign vessel activity and illegal fishing
• Territorial stability: helps prevent maritime boundary conflicts and assert jurisdiction in disputed regions, such as the South China Sea
• Environmental protection: enables control over pollution and conservation efforts

Windward’s solutions are used by governments across the globe to detect suspicious vessel activity in their EEZs, including AIS gaps, loitering behavior, and deceptive shipping practices (DSPs).

How Do Exclusive Economic Zones Impact the Commercial Maritime Sector?

For commercial shipping, understanding exclusive economic zones (EEZs) is essential for safe, efficient, and lawful operations. Vessels must comply with EEZ-specific regulations that govern fishing rights, environmental protections, and flag-state requirements. 

Effective route planning depends on knowing which areas are restricted or potentially volatile due to overlapping EEZ claims or geopolitical tensions. Fishing operations are limited to vessels authorized by the coastal state, and any unauthorized activity can result in legal consequences. Similarly, companies interested in offshore energy development must obtain permission from the relevant state to explore or drill within its EEZ. 

Failing to comply with these rules can lead to vessel detention, fines, or reputational damage. Windward’s platform supports commercial operators by providing visibility into vessel behavior and EEZ boundaries, helping to identify and mitigate compliance risks before they escalate.

What’s the Difference Between an EEZ and Territorial Waters?

Understanding the difference between territorial waters and exclusive economic zones is key to interpreting a state’s rights and responsibilities at sea. Here’s a side-by-side comparison:

Territorial waters are treated as an extension of a country’s land, whereas exclusive economic zones are limited to economic and environmental rights.

What Activities Are Allowed in the Exclusive Economic Zone?

Foreign vessels may still pass through or operate in EEZs under international law, but their activities are restricted. The scope of permitted activities generally falls into the following categories:

• Transit passage: commercial and military ships can navigate without entering territorial waters
• Scientific research: only permitted with the host nation’s approval
• Fishing and extraction: reserved for the EEZ’s coastal nation unless rights are shared by treaty
• Surveillance and security operations: often disputed, especially in contested regions

The EEZ is a legal balancing act between open navigation and national control.

How Many Exclusive Economic Zones Exist?

Today, more than 150 countries have declared EEZs, covering roughly 42% of the world’s ocean surface.

The United States’ exclusive economic zone is the world’s largest, spanning 3.4 million square nautical miles and encompassing the Atlantic, Pacific, Gulf of Mexico, and Arctic waters.

What Are Common EEZ Disputes?

EEZ boundaries are often contested, especially when they overlap or when maritime claims extend beyond the UNCLOS-defined limit.

South China Sea

The South China Sea is one of the world’s most contested maritime regions, with China asserting control over vast areas through its “Nine-Dash Line,” a claim not recognized under international law. This overlaps with the EEZs of the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and others, leading to frequent confrontations over fishing rights, oil exploration, and military presence.

Windward’s coverage of APAC maritime security explores how EEZs play a role in smuggling and deceptive shipping practices.

Eastern Mediterranean

In the Eastern Mediterranean, Turkey, Greece, and Cyprus have overlapping EEZ claims, particularly near the island of Cyprus and the Dodecanese islands. Tensions have escalated over access to undersea hydrocarbon reserves, with naval patrols and drilling activity increasing in disputed waters, often drawing in external actors like the EU and NATO.

Arctic Region

As Arctic ice recedes due to climate change, new maritime routes and resource zones are emerging, prompting EEZ extension claims by Russia, Canada, Denmark (via Greenland), and the U.S. These nations are seeking to expand their jurisdiction over seabed minerals and shipping lanes, raising geopolitical concerns over sovereignty, navigation rights, and environmental protection.

What Is the Economic Importance of Exclusive Economic Zones?

The exclusive economic zone grants countries privileged access to offshore resources and economic opportunities that directly affect their GDP, energy security, and sustainability goals. Over 90% of global fish stocks are caught within EEZs, making them vital to national fisheries and food supply chains. Offshore oil and gas reserves within EEZ boundaries are key contributors to national energy strategies. 

EEZs also support the expanding blue economy, including sustainable aquaculture, seabed mining, and wind energy development. These zones further enable marine scientific research, granting coastal states access to valuable oceanographic and biodiversity data. 

Windward supports this economic activity by helping governments and operators monitor high-value zones, such as offshore drilling platforms and marine protected areas, through real-time behavioral analytics.

How Do EEZ Rules Affect Vessel Routing?

Understanding exclusive economic zone boundaries is crucial for safe and legal maritime navigation. Unauthorized activities within an EEZ can trigger enforcement actions, fines, or diplomatic disputes. Different vessel types face distinct compliance considerations depending on their purpose and behavior:

• Fishing vessels: must avoid unauthorized fishing in foreign EEZs
• Cargo and tanker ships: need to follow flag-state compliance and reporting rules
• Private fleets: may be monitored for loitering or DSPs within sensitive EEZs
• Military vessels: are often tolerated but can be challenged if conducting surveillance

Windward tracks and alerts on vessel behaviors that indicate EEZ violations, helping commercial operators stay compliant and avoid reputational risk.

How Does Windward Help Enforce EEZ Regulations?

Windward’s Maritime AI™ platform enables both governments and commercial clients to monitor and enforce activity within exclusive economic zones. The platform combines multiple capabilities to support proactive enforcement, including:

• AIS anomaly detection: flags dark activity or identity manipulation
• Behavioral analytics: identifies DSPs like ship-to-ship transfers or coordinated loitering
• Geofencing tools: monitor for vessel entry or exit within EEZ boundaries
• Risk scoring: prioritizes attention to vessels likely to violate EEZ restrictions

This data-driven approach transforms EEZ enforcement from manual tracking to proactive, scalable intelligence.