After years of negotiations, UN member states have agreed on the text of the first international treaty on the high seas to protect the world’s oceans. “The ship has reached shore,” UN conference chief Rena Lee said Saturday evening (local time) at United Nations headquarters in New York to the applause of delegates. The agreement was reached after a marathon meeting lasting more than 24 hours.
The member states of the United Nations have been fighting in vain for more than 15 years for an agreement to protect biodiversity on the high seas. A round of negotiations only ended in August without result.
“There will be no more discussions”
According to conference leader Lee, the text, which the delegates agreed on after two weeks of intensive consultation, cannot be substantially changed. “There will be no resumption or substantive discussions,” Lee told negotiators. The agreement will be formalized once it has been reviewed by legal experts and translated into the six official languages of the United Nations, Lee said. The agreement was followed by a standing ovation in the hall.
Russia and China were shaky candidates
It was initially unclear whether Russia and China will be part of the agreement. Negotiators doubted this because of the destructive attitude of the delegation from Moscow. But China was also considered a shaky candidate.
Most recently, the complex negotiations at the Fifth Conference between the UN Member States in New York focused on the question of how to determine in the future which parts of the high seas should be designated as protected areas. According to diplomats, China and Russia in particular insisted that this had to be done unanimously – then a single country could have blocked any decision. That has now apparently been circumvented: diplomatic circles reported on Sunday night that the protected areas should already be determined by a three-quarters majority of the member states.
Greenpeace sees “great success”
The agreement was welcomed by the environmental organization Greenpeace. “The treaty is a great achievement for ocean protection. It shows that conservation can triumph over geopolitics and profit interests,” Greenpeace species conservation expert Ursula Bittner said in a broadcast. However, the contracting states should not rest on their laurels, but should ratify the agreement quickly so that it can be implemented.
Environmental organizations had been pushing for better protection of the world’s oceans in the face of the dangers of global warming, pollution and overfishing. The oceans produce half of the oxygen in the Earth’s atmosphere and absorb a significant portion of the carbon dioxide emitted by human activities.
EU demands much more protected areas
During the negotiations, the EU countries wanted above all to ensure that at least 30 percent of the world’s oceans are designated as protected areas in the future. In addition, there must be a procedure to check economic projects, expeditions and other activities at sea for environmental friendliness.
Two-thirds of the oceans belong to the high seas and are therefore largely illegal. The high seas or high seas are those world seas that do not fall under the exclusive economic zone of any state because they are more than 370 kilometers from the nearest coast. Only about one percent of the high seas is currently protected by international agreements.
An agreement had been reached earlier at another ocean conference in Panama: the participants pledged some 18.8 billion euros for the protection of the seas.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
