The Titanic will now be protected by a treaty between US and UK

The wreckage of the Titanic will now be protected under a "momentous" treaty between the US and UK governments, 107 years after the mammoth ship hit an iceberg and sank to the bottom of the North Atlantic Ocean on its maiden voyage.

The international agreement gives the governments power to grant or deny licences allowing entry of the wreck or removal of artefacts.

It was signed to ensure the resting site of more than 1,500 passengers and crew is preserved and respected.

Built by Harland and Wolff in Belfast, the Titanic sank on April 15, 1912 on its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York. The Titanic was deemed an "unsinkable ship" and was the largest passenger ship afloat in 1912.

The ocean liner sank after hitting an iceberg in the North Atlantic.

Of the 2,223 passengers and crew on board, only 706 survived, according to the US Senate report on the disaster, CNN reported.

Signed by the UK in 2003, the treaty comes into force after being ratified by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo at the end of 2019.

The wreck has not previously been protected under explicit legislation as it lies in international waters.

British Maritime Minister Nusrat Ghani described the agreement as "momentous".

"Lying two and a half miles below the ocean surface, the RMS Titanic is the subject of the most documented maritime tragedy in history," she was quoted as saying by the BBC in Belfast.

"It will be treated with the sensitivity and respect owed to the final resting place of more than 1,500 lives."