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The present thesis argues that the combination of the Port State Control system that is today in operation and the tactics employed by the International Maritime Organisation for the introduction of rules and regulations for safety and pollution prevention at sea, led to the establishment of a system which has the potential to bring about significant changes that extend beyond the area of safety and pollution prevention, reaching areas lying entirely beyond the scope of IMO, and actually affecting directly Private Maritime Law. The first three chapters are dedicated to outlining the relevant provisions of Public International Law of the Sea and analysing their evolution, in order to define the legal framework within which any regulation process for matters of safety and pollution prevention, may manoeuvre. Special reference is made to the development of the concept of Port State Control and its emergence as a new, alternative method of enforcement, under the guidance of IMO. Following this, the study focuses on the modus operandi of IMO and evaluates the tactics employed by this organisation in pursuing its ends. Emphasis is given to the abuse by IMO of the tacit amendment procedure and the effect of the introduction of the 'no more favourable treatment' clauses as a Damoclean sword over the shipping nations of the world. Chapter five examines the practices employed by influential Port States like the EU and the US, in enforcing international regulations as well as their contribution to the establishment of the new reality in shipping, and assesses the reactions of smaller states with large registries, - like Cyprus and the Bahamas - to these developments. The attitude of the different sectors of the industry are investigated in order to assess their reaction. Lastly, chapter six is dedicated to proving that the consequences of these developments find their way, within a very short period of time, to the national laws of the contracting - to the different conventions - states, with the potential of revolutionising principles of Private Maritime Law; something which renders IMO a sui generis alternative legislator for this sensitive area of law. The impact that the ISM Code and the STCW '95 might have on issues of Private Maritime Law is investigated through the use of English Maritime case-law.