EU Statement – UN High-Level Commemorative meeting on the 40th anniversary of the adoption of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea

 - Check against delivery -

The European Union and its Members States are delighted to join in the celebrations of the 40th anniversary of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. We warmly thank the President of the General Assembly for this initiative as well as the distinguished speakers. We consider that this is particularly appropriate this year, being the long-awaited year of the Ocean.

The Candidate Countries North Macedonia^*, Montenegro^*, and Albania^*, the country of the Stabilisation and Association Process and potential candidate Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the EFTA country Iceland, as well as the Republic of Moldova, Georgia, and Monaco, align themselves with this statement.

At the outset let me express the EU and its Member States’ full solidarity with Ukraine and the Ukrainian people. The EU condemns in the strongest possible terms Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified military aggression against Ukraine, which grossly violates international law and the UN Charter, and undermines international security and stability. We demand that Russia immediately ceases its military actions, withdraws all its troops from the entire territory of Ukraine and fully respects Ukraine’s territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence.

The Convention sets out the legal framework within which all activities in oceans and seas must be carried out. It is rightly considered as the Constitution of the oceans, and is one of the most robust and far-sighted instruments ever adopted. Its provisions generally reflect customary international law, and are thus binding on all States.

UNCLOS, which recognizes the profound interrelatedness of all the problems of ocean space and the need to consider them as a whole, is a critical part of the rules-based international order:

• Its scope not only extends to the establishment of maritime areas and the rights and obligations that flow from them, guaranteeing a balance between coastal States and flag States, but also takes into account the needs of landlocked States.
• It enshrines the fundamental principles of the freedom of navigation and overflight, the rights of innocent and transit passage, creates a framework for the protection and preservation of the marine environment, and marine scientific research.
• It establishes a compulsory and binding framework for the peaceful settlement of disputes, including judicial mechanisms whose decisions must be respected.
• It also recognized the role of international organizations and enabled the European Union to become party.

We also pay tribute to the sterling work accomplished by the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf, the International Seabed Authority, and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea.

The Convention remains as pertinent as ever to tackle new and emerging issues, and in this respect to support the UN SG’s Common Agenda and its roadmap for the development and effective implementation of international law.

The future BBNJ agreement will constitute a major legal framework to address the preservation of the marine environment, the sustainability of resources and the conservation of ecosystems in areas beyond national jurisdiction. The EU and its Member States reiterate the commitment they made, together with the members of the High Ambition Coalition on BBNJ, launched at the One Ocean Summit in Brest, and that will be renewed in Lisbon, at the UN Ocean Conference, to reach an ambitious and universal agreement, at a 5th and final conference, in August this year.

Distinguished guests,

It is timely to recall that all parties have the responsibility to promote, and apply in good faith the provisions of UNCLOS, particularly as we wish to promote this "important contribution to the maintenance of peace, justice and progress for all peoples of the world”.

For this purpose, we call on all States to continue to maintain the integrity of UNCLOS, to respect all its provisions, and to condemn any attempt to restrict, undermine, or blatantly disregard this unique instrument. We also remind, especially in view of current situations across the globe, that all maritime claims should be made and peacefully resolved in accordance with UNCLOS.

In conclusion, the European Union and its Member States reiterate their full commitment to UNCLOS and its two implementing agreements. We sincerely hope that the goal of universal participation in this Convention will one day be met.

* North Macedonia, Montenegro, and Albania continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.