Korean professor elected head of UN body on continental shelf

South Korean professor known for his expertise on maritime affairs has been elected head of a UN body dealing with boundary issues for continental shelves, the foreign ministry said Tuesday.

Park Yong-ahn, an oceanography professor at Seoul National University, was picked to be chairman of the Commission on the Limits of Continental Shelf during a meeting held in New York on Sunday (local time), according to the ministry. 

The CLCS was launched in June 1997 under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. Its main function is to make recommendations to coastal states on issues related to installing "outer limits" of their continual shelf beyond 200 nautical miles from their baselines.

Park has served as a commission member for around 20 years since its launch and from 1999 until recently, he has also worked as its vice chairman. With the latest election, the professor will take the helm of the CLCS for two and a half years, the ministry said. (Yonhap)