Declaration made upon ratification:
"On depositing its Instrument of Ratification of the Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage (approved by Law No. 32 of 26 March 2003 and proclaimed in the Official Gazette No. 24,773 of 2 April 2003), the Republic of Panama declares that it has sole sovereignty over the Gulf of Panama, by nature and history a Panamanian bay, whose coasts belong in their entirety to the Republic of Panama. It is a clearly defined geographic configuration, being a large scooped-out incurvation to the south of the Isthmus of Panama, with sea waters underlying the seabed and its subsoil in the area between latitudes 07°28’00" North and 07°31’00" North, and longitudes 79°59’53" and 78°11’40", both west of Greenwich. These determine the location of Punta Mala and Punta Jaqué, at the West and East of the entrance of the Gulf of Panama respectively. This large indentation cuts well into the land area of the Isthmus of Panama. The width of its entrance, from Punta Mala to Punta Jaqué, is about two hundred kilometres (200 kms) and its extension inland (measured from an imaginary line linking Punta Mala and Punta Jaqué up to the mouths of the Río Chico, east of Panama City) is one hundred and sixty-five kilometres (165 kms).
In view of its current and potential resources the Gulf of Panama, a historic bay, has been a vital necessity for the Republic of Panama since time immemorial, both with regard to its security and defence and to the economic field, since its marine resources have long been used by the inhabitants of the Isthmus of Panama.
Oblong in shape, with a coastal outline which somewhat resembles a calf's head, the Gulf has a coastal perimeter under Panamanian sea control of some six hundred and sixty-eight kilometres (668 kms). Within this demarcation, the Gulf of Panama, a historic bay, has an area of approximately thirty thousand square kilometres (30,000 kms²).
The Republic of Panama declares that in the exercise of its sovereign and jurisdictional rights and the accomplishment of its duties, it will act in accordance with the provisions of the Convention, reserving the right to issue other related declarations, should the need arise."