The lntegrated Maritime Policy (IMP) of the EU is included within the new maritime policy initiatives arisen in the last years both in developed and developing countries. This article claims that these initiatives are the response to the new challenges in the oceanic domain. The lMP is the European answer to the new oceanic order. In the global context, the lMP competes with other emerging countries with dynamic economies, whose competitiveness rests on not so rigorous social and environmental standards. On the other hand, this article underlines the importance of maritime policies for security, as they contribute to a better governance of the oceanic domain which, to a great extent, Jalls outside the jurisdiction of the States
