josh rogin, what is the law of the sea treaty? >> the treaty is an international convention that is sets rules of the road for oversea and undersea commerce and travel it was established in the '80s and then amended in 1994. to the 161 countries have signed on as well as the european union but not the united states. it's advocates say that in order for the u.s. to have mineral rights and rights for oil and gas exploration beyond the continental shelf, that the u.s. has to have a seat at the table in some of the international bodies that this treaty has established. its opponents say that nel agreement to join these bodies would be necessarily conceding some of american sovereignty and freedom of action in the high seas. and they're opposed to it. the debate begins today into if it was established in 1994, you said 161 countries have signed on so far, what's been the stumbling block to getting it approve the by the u.s. senate? >> well, i mean, there's entrenched opposition on the gop side. had has come up in the senate in a seriou

. >> josh rogin with foreign policy magazine, read his work at foreign policy.com. thank you for the update. >> anytime. >> now live coverage of this morning's hearings here on c-span3. >> you all set? the hearing will come to order. thank you all very much for being here with us today. secretary clinton, secretary panetta, and general dempsey, welcome. we're particularly privileged to have you here today, and we thank you for joining us. it's really a rare occasion i think in any committee but it's a rare occasion in this committee when we have simultaneously a panel of witnesses that brings together america's top diplomat, our country's top defense official, and our nation's top military officer. your presence here all together powerfully underscores the importance that you put on this issue. our committee shares this sense of importance, which is why i hope without respect to party or ideology, we will begin an open, honest, and comprehensive discussion about whether the united states of america should join the law of the sea convention. i want to underscore the