Leon Panetta actually said...

I strongly believe that accession to this treaty is absolutely essential not only to our economic interests, our diplomatic interests, but I...

By finally acceding to the Convention, we help make our Nation more secure and more prosperous for generations to come.

It simply should not be acceptable to us that the United States will be absent from either of those discussions.

Although we do not have territory there, we have vital interests--particularly freedom of navigation.