Formally delimited two separate maritime boundaries between Australia and France across both the Coral Sea and the southern Indian Ocean.
Key Facts
- Signing date
- 4 January 1982
- Entry into force
- 10 January 1983
- Coral Sea boundary segments
- 21 straight-line segments (22 coordinate points)
- Indian Ocean boundary segments
- 7 straight-line segments (8 coordinate points)
- Signing location
- Melbourne, Australia
- Territories covered
- Norfolk Island / New Caledonia; Heard-McDonald Islands / Kerguelen
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Australia and France both held adjacent territories in the Coral Sea and the southern Indian Ocean with no formally agreed ocean boundaries between them. Defining exclusive maritime zones required a bilateral treaty to clarify jurisdiction over fisheries, resources, and navigation in those overlapping areas.
On 4 January 1982, Australia and France signed the Agreement on Marine Delimitation in Melbourne, establishing two distinct maritime boundaries: a modified equidistant line of 21 segments between Australia and New Caledonia in the Coral Sea, and a seven-segment equidistant line between Heard-McDonald Islands and Kerguelen Island in the Indian Ocean.
The treaty entered into force on 10 January 1983 after ratification by both states, providing clear legal boundaries for each country's maritime jurisdiction. It also implicitly recognised French sovereignty over Matthew and Hunter Islands for the purpose of drawing the equidistant line, a matter otherwise contested by Vanuatu.
Political Outcome
Two maritime boundaries formally delimited: one in the Coral Sea and one in the southern Indian Ocean, with the treaty entering into force on 10 January 1983.