Oceans and Law of the Sea

Following the announcement made on behalf of the Chairman of the Nippon Foundation, Yohei Sasakawa, at the UN Ocean Conference in July 2022, the United Nations-Nippon Foundation (UNNF) capacity-building programmes implemented by the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea (the Division) are set to expand. Commencing in August 2024, a new three-month Ocean Governance Fellowship for Small Island Developing States will be launched to complement the existing UNNF Fellowship and Strategic Needs Fellowship.

The Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf held its fifty-ninth session at United Nations Headquarters, from 4 October to 21 November.

Member States today called for collective will to address cumulative pressures on oceans and their resources, which pose direct threats to people who depend on them, as the General Assembly adopted two draft resolutions in a joint debate on oceans and the law of the sea as well as sustainable fisheries.

The resumed thirty-third Meeting of States Parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, presided over by Cornel Ferută (Romania), was held at Headquarters on 28 November.

The thirty-third Meeting of States Parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea will be resumed at Headquarters on 28 November, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., for the purpose of filling seats in the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf allocated to the members of the Commission from Eastern European States.

The Sixth Committee (Legal) welcomed the outgoing President of the International Court of Justice today according to its annual tradition, who reflected on the future of the Court where she has served for over 13 years.

As the Sixth Committee (Legal) continue reviewing the first cluster of the International Law Commission’s annual report, many speakers addressed the juridical nature of general principles of law and its distinction within the international legal system and rules of customary law.

As the Sixth Committee (Legal) began its consideration of the International Law Commission report today, speakers took up the first of three clusters of topics, including the chapters on “General principles of law”, “Sea-level rise in relation to international law” and “Other decisions and conclusions of the Commission”, while also discussing the Commission’s approach and working methods.

Following is the text of UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ video message to the Second Sustainable Blue Economy Investment Forum, in Estoril, Portugal, today:

Following is UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ message for World Maritime Day, observed on 28 September: