United Nations Annual Treaty Event Encourages Countries to Join, Ratify Global Instruments on Range of Issues

In a continuing effort to encourage wider participation in the multilateral treaty framework, the United Nations is hosting the annual Treaty Event at its Headquarters from 28 September to 1 October.  During the event, Member States are invited to sign multilateral treaties deposited with the United Nations Secretary-General or become party to them by depositing instruments of ratification or accession.

This year’s event highlights 70 years of multilateral treaty-making at the United Nations.  The very first lines of the Preamble of the United Nations Charter express a determination to establish conditions under which respect for the obligations arising under treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained.  Seventy years later, a comprehensive and robust multilateral treaty framework is one of the major contributions of the United Nations to an international order based on the rule of law — an indispensable foundation for a more peaceful, prosperous and just world.

Multilateral treaties have grown in number and complexity, covering a wide array of fields of international relations, including disarmament, law of the sea, trade and transport, the protection of human rights, the fight against terrorism and the preservation of the environment.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, in his letter of invitation to Member States, stated that the Treaty Event “provides a distinct opportunity for States to fulfil pledges made in national and international fora to sign on to, and particularly, to ratify or accede to multilateral treaties”.

More than 560 multilateral treaties are deposited with the Secretary-General.  A number of them are close to achieving universal participation.  Others require just a few more instruments of ratification or accession to trigger their entry into force.  The Secretary-General’s letter of invitation called on States “to join efforts to advance the universal application of the framework of internationally agreed upon norms and standards” and that “universal participation and implementation of treaties remains an ambitious yet important goal, requiring the combined efforts of all States”.

The Treaty Event has been held annually since September 2000, usually coinciding with the general debate of the General Assembly.  Since then, the Treaty Events have resulted in 1,959 treaty-related actions, including signatures, ratifications and accessions.  Last year, 52 States undertook 81 treaty actions during the course of the Treaty Event.

In September 2000, the United Nations invited world leaders attending the landmark Millennium Summit to take advantage of their presence at United Nations Headquarters to sign a wide range of major international treaties.  This year, world leaders attending the Sustainable Development Summit at the opening of the seventieth session of the General Assembly are expected to undertake a number of treaty actions.

For more information on the 2015 Treaty Event, please visit:  http://treaties.un.org.

For media queries, please contact Martina Donlon, Department of Public Information, at e-mail:  donlon@un.org, or tel.:  +1 212 963 6816.