TENTH MEETING OF PARTIES TO LAW OF SEA CONVENTION CONCLUDES;

Press Release
SEA/1680

TENTH MEETING OF PARTIES TO LAW OF SEA CONVENTION CONCLUDES;

'Cooperation, Spirit of Compromise' Facilitate Key Decisions on Trust Funds, 2001 Agenda

States parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea concluded their Tenth Meeting Friday evening with an in-depth debate on their role in the implementation of the Convention, as well as budgetary and financial matters among the highlights of the session.

During the final hours of the Meeting, the States parties adopted a decision recommending that the General Assembly establish a voluntary trust fund for the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, to be administered by the Secretary-General, to facilitate the submission of cases by States.

They further decided to recommend to the General Assembly the establishment of another voluntary trust fund, to meet the costs of participation in its meetings by developing-country members of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf. Both the Tribunal and the Commission were set up under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Furthermore, the Meeting decided to recommend to the General Assembly the establishment of a voluntary fund or funds for the purposes of (i) providing assistance to States parties to meet their obligations under article 76 of the Convention; and (ii) providing training to developing countries, in particular the least developed among them and small island developing States, for preparing their submissions to the Commission with respect to limits of their continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles.

In other action, the States parties decided to include in the agenda of their next Meeting an item concerning compliance with the 10-year limit under article 4 of Annex II of the Convention for submissions to the Commission.

A proposal by Chile for the inclusion in the agenda of the Meetings of States parties of an item entitled “Implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea” engendered an in-depth debate on the role of the States parties in that effort. The Meeting decided to include in its agenda for the next Meeting an item on matters referred to in article 319 of the Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Currently, 132 States have become parties to the 1982 Convention, and an increasing number are in the process of ratifying or acceding to it, including major industrialized States.

States Parties - 2 - Press Release SEA/1680 51st & 52nd Meetings (AM & PM) 30 May 2000

Peter Donigi (Papua New Guinea), the President of the Tenth Meeting, in a closing statement, paid tribute to delegations for the cooperation and spirit of compromise with which they approached the work of the Meeting. He underscored the appeal made by the Secretary-General of the International Seabed Authority, Satya N. Nandan, for States parties to pay their contributions to the Authority in full and on time, and particularly to participate in its work in order to facilitate its decision-making.

The States parties decided to hold their Eleventh Meeting from 7 to 11 May 2001.

Tenth Meeting Highlights

In the course of the Tenth Meeting, which began on Monday 22 May, the States parties approved the 2001 budget of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, which envisaged the expenditure of $8,090,900. The budget was discussed at length in an open-ended working group, thus, facilitating early agreement. A number of delegations made statements in plenary discussion regarding some aspects of the budget, as well as recruitment of staff for the Tribunal’s Registry. Some stressed the need for cost-effectiveness, while others spoke of the need for observance of the principle of geographical representation.

Proposals submitted on the Tribunal’s financial regulations were fully discussed, and the Tribunal's Registry and secretariat are to prepare a revised draft for further consideration at the next Meeting of the States parties. Similarly, establishment of a finance committee was deferred after detailed discussion by the Meeting. The Meeting decided to postpone further discussion of a United Kingdom proposal on the majority needed for approval of financial questions. The United Kingdom representative had earlier amended the proposal to delete the concept of weighted voting, but delegations continued to object to the proposal.

The Meeting took note of the 1999 report of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, which was presented by the President of the Tribunal, Judge P. Chandrasekhara Rao. He drew special attention to its unsatisfactory financial situation, due to an unpaid balance of assessed contributions of $1.47 million. The Tribunal had dealt with five high profile cases, and its orders and judgements were being followed and implemented. The Tribunal would move next July into new premises in Nienstedten, outside Hamburg, in a ceremony expected to be attended by United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

The Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf has also made considerable progress since its establishment, said the report. It had already prepared the scientific and technical guidelines for submissions. The Commission was ready for any submission by coastal States on the establishment of limits to the continental shelf extended beyond 200 nautical miles.

The Meeting took note of a report on the activities of the International Seabed Authority, presented by its Secretary-General Satya N. Nandan. He said the Authority had approved plans of work for exploration by the seven pioneer investors, and was now finalizing a draft mining code. An agreement between the Seabed Authority and the Government of Jamaica concerning the Authority’s headquarters had been signed. He appealed to States parties to support the work of the Authority by paying their assessed contributions in full and on time, and also to participate in its meetings.

On its last day, the Meeting dealt with a number of issues. They included the financial regulations of the Tribunal, contained in document SPLOS/36; and the establishment of a trust fund for the Commission on the Limits to the Continental Shelf to enable members from developing countries to participate in its work; and another trust fund for the Commission’s technical and training programmes .

Judge Rao, President of the Tribunal, said the management of the Tribunal’s resources was the responsibility of its Registrar, by rule 36.1 of its rules, except for the function mentioned in paragraph 12.8 of its rules. (That paragraph stipulates that the Tribunal shall examine the financial statements and audit reports and shall forward them to the Meeting of States parties, with such comments as it deems appropriate.)

Trust Fund

Responding to comments on a proposal on financing of participation in the work of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf by its members from developing countries, the Commission’s Secretary, Alexei Zinchenko, noted that the Convention on the Law of the Sea asserted the principle that States parties should defray the costs of the members they nominated. He said the Tenth Meeting had to decide whether a trust fund should be established for that purpose, and to recommend that the General Assembly act on a draft resolution to that effect.

A number of representatives supported the proposal, with Papua New Guinea adding that the fund should be expanded to provide technical assistance for developing countries, including small island developing countries, in preparing submissions to the Commission on extending the limit to their continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles.

The representative of Japan said the Convention, as indicated by the Secretary to the Commission, clearly defined the obligations of States parties. Those obligations must be adhered to, he said.

The representative of the United Kingdom said that, notwithstanding the provisions of the Convention, his delegation would support the trust fund, whose contributions should be on a purely voluntary basis. Broadening the trust fund should take into account funding for small island developing States.

Others supporting the establishment of the fund were Sierra Leone, Republic of Korea, Trinidad and Tobago, Ghana, Tonga, China, Italy, Ireland, Netherlands, Fiji, Sierra Leone, Federated States of Micronesia, Chile, New Zealand and Jamaica. Portugal had doubts that the trust fund would be enough to help coastal developing countries chart their continental shelf.

The representative of Nigeria said the trust fund should be broadened to cover technical training for personnel from developing countries, particularly African States. Using the resources of the trust fund for technical assistance was a complex matter calling for further debate, the representative of Mexico said.

Replying to suggestions about training, Mr. Zinchenko said the Commission had considered the issue of the training necessary to help States prepare their submissions in respect of the outer limits of the continental shelf. The Commission had adopted an action plan on training, and had prepared a basic flow chart for the preparation of submissions by coastal States. It was working on models for a training course, which would be organized on a contractual basis by the Secretariat.

(In a letter to the President of the fifty-fourth session of the General Assembly, the Chairman of the Commission, Yuri B. Kazmin, said research had been done to identify training needs and available means, including a review of existing training projects and capacities within the United Nations system. But there was a clear need for political and financial support for training programmes, he said, especially for developing countries, both within the United Nations system and through other appropriate intergovernmental or non-governmental organizations at the international or regional level).

After a further exchange of views on the matter, the President of the Tenth Meeting proposed a text recommending that the General Assembly establish a voluntary trust fund for the purpose of meeting the costs of participation in the Commission’s meetings by members of the Commission from developing countries. That text was adopted.

He also proposed the following second draft decision:

"Noting the concerns of some States regarding their compliance as a matter of urgency under article 76 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the need for dissemination of information and for training of personnel of developing countries with respect to their compliance under article 76 of the Convention,

"The Tenth Meeting of States parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea decides to recommend to the General Assembly of the United Nations that the Assembly consider, at its fifty-fifth session, under the agenda item entitled ‘Oceans and the law of the sea’, the establishment of a voluntary fund or funds, for the purposes of (i) providing assistance to States parties to meet their obligations under article 76 of the Convention; and (ii) providing training to countries, in particular the least developed among them and small island developing States, for preparing their submission to the Commission with respect to limits of their continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles, as appropriate."

The Meeting agreed to the proposal.

The representative of Sierra Leone said that, on the matter of compliance under article 76, his country, as well as many other developing States, would not be able to make the submissions within the 10-year limit stipulated under that article because of the technical requirements of preparing surveys and charts. He proposed that the Meeting recommend that the General Assembly extend the 10-year period. He said the time limit could be extended without the Convention being amended. He also requested that the Meeting seriously consider the establishment of an African Ocean Institute to assist African countries in maritime activities.

The representative of Senegal said the establishment of the institute required more study to gain broader support. The representative of the Netherlands, opposing the first request, said that strict time limits had been set. She added that the issue should be considered by the Meeting of States parties and not the General Assembly. She recommended revisiting the issue next year and asked the secretariat for a background paper.

She was supported in this by the representatives of Germany, New Zealand, Norway, India, Brazil, Portugal, Japan, Fiji, Mexico, and Tonga.

The representative of Chile said the debate had underscored the need for an agenda item on discussion of issues relating to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, just as his delegation had proposed.

The President then proposed the adoption of the following text:

"Noting that some delegations have raised the possibility of extending the time period for States Parties’ compliance with article 4 of Annex II of the Convention, the Meeting considers it important that a background paper be prepared by the Secretariat, and decides to include in the agenda of the next session of the Meeting of States Parties an item entitled ‘Compliance with article 4 of Annex II of the Convention’.”

The Meeting adopted the text.

The Meeting then continued its debate on the Chilean proposal (document S/PLOS/CRP.22). [For more information on that proposal, see Press Release SEA/1678 of 25 May.]

The representative of the United States noted that the functions of the Meeting of the States parties were stated in articles 4 and 19 of the Statute of the Tribunal – namely, to elect judges and manage the budget. She also noted that next week the Open-ended Informal Consultative Process on Ocean Affairs would convene, a body established by the General Assembly, where experts would focus on questions raised by Chile. The Meeting could not expand its mandate.

The representatives of the United Kingdom and Sweden also opposed the proposal.

The representative of Nigeria supported the proposal, as did in general the representatives of Mexico, New Zealand, Ghana, Argentina, Brazil, Guatemala, Uruguay, India, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Croatia and Finland. The representative of India mentioned that the "housekeeping duties" of the Meeting could not be taken as an inference that other functions had been excluded. Greece was among those who had supported the proposal during the previous day’s debate.

Portugal supported a "reasonable” expansion of the agenda of the Meeting, but preferred not to engage in discussions of the proposal at the present. The representative of New Zealand noted the issue of coordination with the Open-ended Consultative Process. Many representatives agreed with the representative of China, who stressed the need for further study of the proposal, and asked for deferral of the discussion to the next Meeting of States parties.

The representative of Norway said that the Convention allotted different tasks to different bodies, an issue that the Chilean proposal did not take into account. The Convention mentioned competent international organizations, such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and the International Maritime Organization (IMO), which could handle issues such as fisheries and environmental matters. Implementation of the Convention would have to follow the provisions provided by the Convention. He hoped that Chile would refine its proposal for the next Meeting of States parties.

The representative of Chile, answering questions raised, said it was logical that parties to a treaty meeting at plenipotentiary level should be able to consider all matters pertinent to that treaty and assure implementation of that treaty. This Meeting had demonstrated how necessary it was to have an item on the agenda to consider such matters. The fact that the Meeting existed did not preclude political consideration of ocean-related issues in the General Assembly or in the Informal Consultative Process. The General Assembly could indeed coordinate the different agencies of the United Nations system which dealt with the oceans, but that did not mean giving the General Assembly jurisdiction over the Convention. That would be unacceptable. The legal order of the oceans was the scope of the Convention.

Representatives of Trinidad and Tobago, Papua New Guinea, Bolivia, Ireland, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, and France also participated in the debate.

As a compromise, Mexico proposed inclusion in the next Meeting's agenda of item on matters referred to in article 319 of the Convention of the Law of the Sea. The Meeting decided to approve the proposal.

The Meeting then decided that the next Meeting of States Parties would convene from 7 to 11 May 2001.

Closing Statement of President

Peter Donigi (Papua New Guinea), President of the Tenth Meeting, in a closing statement, reviewed the various decisions that had been reached. He said the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea and its Registry had demonstrated considerable responsibility in addressing budgetary and financial matters. The 2001 budget of the Tribunal, in the sum of $8,090,900, provided for the spreading of the cost of the integrated computer network in the new premises over two budgetary periods. Similarly, the need for posts at the General Service level would be reviewed in the light of experience gained during this year.

The contribution of the European Community to the budget would be proportionate to the approved budget and would be based on the contribution for the current budget. He drew attention to the need to ensure that the assessed contributions to the Tribunal were paid in full and in a timely fashion to enable it to discharge its functions efficiently.

He said further work was required on the financial regulations of the Tribunal, and he had invited the secretariat and the Tribunal’s Registry to prepare a revised draft of the regulations, taking into account the discussions that had taken place during the Meeting. He noted also that discussion of establishment of a finance committee was deferred to the next Meeting of States parties. He asked interested delegations to submit a formal proposal that would give the Meeting a framework for further deliberation on the issue.

The President underscored the Secretary-General's appeal to delegations to pay their contributions to the Authority in full and on time, and particularly to participate in its work in order to facilitate its decision-making.

He expressed deep appreciation for the cooperation and the spirit of compromise with which delegations had approached the work of the Meeting. It would not have achieved progress without that cooperation, he said.

Officers of Tenth Meeting

The following countries were elected Vice-Presidents of the Tenth Meeting: Australia, Cameroon, Chile and Croatia.

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