ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Internal waters

Internal waters are like a big pool in your backyard, except they belong to a country instead of a person. These waters are surrounded by land and are completely controlled by the country that they belong to. Think of it like a big fence around your pool, but instead of keeping out people, it keeps out other countries.

Just like how your parents make all the rules for your pool, the country that owns the internal waters gets to make all the rules about what can and can't happen within their waters. This includes things like fishing, transportation, and even who is allowed to enter.

Essentially, internal waters are an area that a country has complete control over, and they are treated like their own little private swimming pool in the big ocean.