On the sidelines of the seventy-eighth United Nations General Debate, 85 States and 1 international organization undertook a total of 102 actions at the annual Treaty Event which ended today.
On 22 January, the Permanent Representative of Palau handed over to the Under-Secretary-General for Legal Affairs and United Nations Legal Counsel Palau’s instrument of ratification of the Agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction at United Nations Headquarters. This is the first instrument of ratification for the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Agreement that has been deposited.
Following yesterday’s landmark adoption of the historic new maritime biodiversity treaty, the Intergovernmental Conference on Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction concluded its work today, as delegates underscored the importance of the agreement’s swift implementation and rapid ratification and called for funding towards this end.
With a standing ovation marking the conclusion of years of extensive negotiations, the Intergovernmental Conference on Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction today adopted a historic maritime biodiversity treaty.
The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:
Following nearly 36 hours of non-stop negotiations, the Intergovernmental Conference today reached agreement on the text for a historic new maritime biodiversity treaty, as it adjourned its fifth resumed session.
As the Intergovernmental Conference to draft a new maritime biodiversity treaty convened on the eve of the closure of its resumed fifth session, some delegations expressed concern that discussions have gone beyond the Conference’s scope or are not adequately addressing the needs of geographically and economically vulnerable groups of countries, underscoring that the Conference’s outcome must align with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Adopting Marine Biodiversity Treaty ‘Important Step Forward’ in Advancing Ocean Health for Generations to Come, Secretary-General Tells Intergovernmental Conference
As the Intergovernmental Conference to draft a new maritime biodiversity treaty continued its resumed fifth session, the Secretary-General sent a message to delegations, urging them to adopt a robust and ambitious agreement that advances ocean health for future generations.
The Intergovernmental Conference to draft a new maritime biodiversity treaty continued its resumed fifth session today, as the President of the Conference, underscoring that “the time is ticking”, urged delegations to focus on the “must-dos” and “must-haves” to close on the text.