The question of whether the world’s first treaty to conserve and protect marine diversity on the high seas should include an indicative and non‑exhaustive list of types of capacity‑building and transfer of technology dominated today’s discussions at the intergovernmental conference tasked with drafting that legally binding instrument.
The intergovernmental conference to draft the first‑ever treaty to conserve and protect marine diversity on the high seas concluded its general discussions today before moving to informal negotiations on the text, with speakers calling for a universal, inclusive text that is careful not to jeopardize existing frameworks.
An intergovernmental conference to draft the first‑ever treaty addressing biodiversity on and beneath the high seas opened its first substantive session at Headquarters today with speakers emphasizing the urgency of forging an agreement — ideally by consensus — as soon as possible, but acknowledging the significant challenges that lay ahead.
NEW YORK, 13 July (United Nations Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea, Office of Legal Affairs) — The Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf will hold its forty-seventh session from 16 July to 31 August 2018. The plenary segments of the session will be held from 6 to 10 August and from 27 to 31 August. The remainder of the session will be devoted to the technical examination of submissions at the Division’s geographic information systems laboratories and other technical facilities.
The twenty-eighth Meeting of States Parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea was held at Headquarters from 11 to 12 June, completing its work two days early.
Following is UN Secretary‑General António Guterres’ message for World Oceans Day, observed today:
The twenty-eighth Meeting of States Parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea will be held at United Nations Headquarters from 11 to 14 June.
Member States had set the tone for progress towards developing a legally binding treaty aimed at the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction, the President of the Intergovernmental Conference on the matter said today as she concluded its three-day organizational meeting.
Consensus and balance were crucial in drafting a document that captured current progress and helped guide discussions towards a legally binding treaty aimed at the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction, delegates stressed in interactive dialogues during the second day of the Intergovernmental Conference on the matter.
With oceans and seas moderating global climate conditions, maintaining the earth’s ecosystem, and supporting the livelihood of more than 3 billion people, it was critical to develop a binding treaty aimed at the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity, delegates heard today as they convened to address organizational matters towards that goal.
