Small islands seek UN sea court’s opinion on climate change

BERLIN (AP) — The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea says that small island states have asked it to provide an opinion on what impact a key U.N. treaty governing maritime activities has on efforts to curb climate change. The Hamburg-based U.N. tribunal says it received a request from Antigua and Barbuda and Tuvalu to render an advisory opinion on the climate obligations arising to parties from the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea. It isn’t clear whether or when an advisory opinion could eventually be issued. But if the tribunal does provide the treaty’s 168 parties with legal guidance on the issue of climate change it could trigger further cases.