territorial waters

American  

[ter-i-tawr-ee-uhl waw-terz, wot-erz] / ˈtɛr ɪˌtɔr i əl ˈwɔ tərz, ˈwɒt ərz /

plural noun

International Law.

1. the waters of a coastal state or nation that are regarded as under the jurisdiction of the state or nation, traditionally within 3 miles (4.8 km) of the shore, but with claims by certain coastal nations that have extended to 12 or even 200 miles (20 or 322 km).

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territorial waters British  

plural noun

1. the waters over which a nation exercises jurisdiction and control

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Etymology

Origin of territorial waters

First recorded in 1870–75

Example Sentences

They say all the bodies were found after the helicopter went down due to a "technical malfunction" in Qatar's territorial waters on Sunday.

From BBC

Three Turkish nationals, including a serviceman, and three Qatari military personnel were killed when a helicopter crashed in Qatar's territorial waters, the Gulf country's defence ministry said.

From Barron's

What is clear is that Iranian officials view the Israeli — or American — targeting of facilities in their territorial waters in the South Pars field as sufficient to justify hitting facilities on the Qatari side.

From Salon

Also, CNN reported that 38 crew members were rescued after a suspected Iranian attack set two foreign tankers ablaze in Iraqi territorial waters, citing the head of Iraq’s ports company.

From MarketWatch

At its narrowest point, the Strait of Hormuz and its shipping lanes lie entirely within Iran and Oman's territorial waters.

From BBC