Oceans and the law of the sea

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea entered into force on 16 November 1994. As at 1 March 2016, there were 167 parties, including the European Union.

The Agreement relating to the implementation of part XI of the Convention entered into force on 28 July 1996. The Agreement is to be interpreted and applied together

with the Convention as a single instrument. As at 1 March 2016, there were 147 parties, including the European Union. The Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks entered into force on 11 December 2001.

As at 1 March 2016, there were 82 parties, including the European Union.

Since 1984, the General Assembly has considered developments pertaining to the Convention, as well as those relating to ocean affairs and the law of the sea, initially under the item entitled “Law of the sea” (resolutions 39/73, 40/63, 41/34, 42/20, 43/18, 44/26, 45/145, 46/78, 47/65, 48/28, 49/28, 50/23 and 51/34) and then under the item entitled “Oceans and the law of the sea” (resolutions 52/26, 53/32, 54/31, 54/33, 55/7, 56/12, 57/33, 57/141, 58/240, 59/24, 60/30, 61/222, 62/215, 63/111, 64/71, 65/37 A and B, 66/231, 67/5, 67/78, 68/70, 69/245, 69/292, 70/226 and 70/235). The Assembly also considered fisheries-related issues initially under the item entitled “Law of the sea” (resolutions 46/215, 49/116, 49/118, 50/24, 50/25, 51/35 and 51/36) and then under the item “Oceans and the law of the sea” (resolutions 52/28, 52/29, 53/33, 54/32, 55/8, 56/13, 57/142, 57/143, 58/14, 59/25, 60/31, 61/105, 62/177, 63/112, 64/72, 65/38, 66/68, 67/79, 68/71, 69/109 and 70/75).

(a) Oceans and the law of the sea

At its forty-ninth session, in 1994, the General Assembly decided to undertake an annual review and evaluation of the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and other relevant developments, and requested the Secretary-General to report annually to the Assembly as from its fiftieth session (resolution 49/28).

At its fifty-fourth session, the General Assembly decided to establish an open-ended informal consultative process (“Informal Consultative Process”) in order to facilitate the annual review by the Assembly of developments in ocean affairs (resolution 54/33).

At its fifty-seventh session, the General Assembly decided to establish a regular process under the United Nations for global reporting and assessment of the state of the marine environment, including socioeconomic aspects, both current and foreseeable, building on existing regional assessments, and invited the Secretary-General to establish an effective, transparent and regular inter -agency coordination mechanism on oceans and coastal issues within the United Nations system (resolution 57/141).

At its fifty-ninth session, the General Assembly decided to establish an Ad Hoc Open-ended Informal Working Group to study issues relating to the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity beyond areas of national jurisdiction (“Ad Hoc Open-ended Informal Working Group”) (resolution 59/24).

At its sixty-fifth session, the General Assembly decided that the Regular Process for Global Reporting and Assessment of the State of the Marine Environment, including Socioeconomic Aspects (“Regular Process”), would be overseen and guided by an Ad Hoc Working Group of the Whole of the Assembly, composed of Member States;

and requested the Secretary-General to designate the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea of the Office of Legal Affairs of the Secretariat to provide

secretariat support to the Regular Process, including its established institutions (resolution 65/37 A).

At its sixty-sixth session, the General Assembly decided to initiate, within the Ad Hoc Open-ended Informal Working Group, a process with a view to ensuring that the legal framework for the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction effectively addressed those issues by identifying gaps and ways forward, including through the implementation of existing instruments and the possible development of a multilateral agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (resolution 66/231).

At its sixty-eighth session, the General Assembly approved the revised terms of reference for the work of UN-Oceans, with a revised mandate, as annexed to resolution 68/70. The Assembly also reaffirmed the commitment made by States in

“The future we want” to address, on an urgent basis, building on the work of the Ad Hoc Open-ended Informal Working Group and before the end of the sixty-ninth session of the Assembly, the issue of the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction, including by taking a decision on the development of an international instrument under the Convention, and decided to establish a process within the Working Group to prepare for such action. The Assembly requested, in this regard, the Ad Hoc Open-ended Informal Working Group, within its mandate established by resolution 66/231 and in the light of resolution 67/78, and in order to prepare for the decision to be taken at the sixty-ninth session of the Assembly, to make recommendations to the Assembly on the scope, parameters and feasibility of an international instrument under the Convention.

At its sixty-ninth session, the General Assembly reaffirmed its request, in resolution 68/70, for the Ad Hoc Open-ended Informal Working Group, within its mandate established by resolution 66/231 and in the light of resolution 67/78, and in order to prepare for the decision on the development of an international instrument under the Convention to be taken at the sixty-ninth session of the Assembly, to make recommendations to the Assembly at the Working Group meeting to be held from 20 to 23 January 2015 on the scope, parameters and feasibility of an international instrument under the Convention (resolution 69/245, sect. X). Subsequently, the Assembly decided to develop an international legally binding instrument 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, and also decided to establish, prior to holding an intergovernmental conference, a preparatory committee to make substantive recommendations to the Assembl y on the elements of a draft text of an international legally binding instrument under the Convention, taking into account the various reports of the Co -Chairs on the work of the Ad Hoc Open-ended Informal Working Group to study issues relating to the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity beyond areas of national jurisdiction (resolution 69/292). The Assembly decided to continue the Informal Consultative Process for the next two years, in accordance with resolution 54/33, with a further review of its effectiveness and utility by the General Assembly at its seventy-first session; and decided that, in its deliberations on the report of the Secretary-General on oceans and the law of the sea, the Informal Consultative Process shall focus its discussions at its seventeenth meeting in 2016 on “Marine debris, plastics and microplastics”. The Assembly authorized the Secretary -General, as an interim measure and subject to the availability of funds in the trust fund established pursuant to resolution 55/7 for facilitating the participation of members

of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf from developing States in the meetings of the Commission, following the allocation of the required funds to cover the costs of travel and daily subsistence allowance of the members of the Commission from developing States for the sessions of the Commission in 2015, to reimburse those members for the costs of medical travel insurance from that trust fund on a session-by-session basis and subject to a reasonable limit that the Secretary-General shall determine, based on the information regarding medical travel insurance available to him; requested the Secretary-General to provide written information on options for mechanisms to provide medical insurance coverage to members of the Commission, including costs; and expressed its intention to further review the terms of reference for the trust fund established pursuant to resolution 55/7 for the purpose of facilitating the participation of members of the Commission from developing States in the meetings of the Commission, after consideration of the information provided by the Secretary-General on options for mechanisms to provide medical insurance coverage to members of the Commission (resolution 69/245, sects. VII and XIV).

At its seventieth session, the General Assembly recalled its resolution 69/292, entitled “Development of an international legally binding instrument 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”.

The Assembly endorsed the recommendations adopted by the Ad Hoc Working Group of the Whole at its sixth meeting; welcomed the first global integrated marine assessment and approved its summary; decided to launch the second cycle of the Regular Process; and requested the Bureau of the Ad Hoc Working Group of the Whole to continue the consideration of lessons learned from the first cycle of the Regular Process with a view to the implementation of the second cycle, including by inviting Member States, observers and other participants in the Working Group, through the Co-Chairs, to contribute by sending their views in writing to the Bureau and convening one or more informal open meetings with Member States, observers and other participants in the Working Group, and requested the Bureau to inform the Working Group at its seventh meeting of the views received and to circulate that information in advance of the seventh meeting of the Working Group. It requested the Secretary-General to convene the seventh meeting of the Ad Hoc Working Group of the Whole from 3 to 9 August 2016, with a view to providing recommendations to the Assembly on the follow-up to the assessment, the implementation of the second cycle of the Regular Process, including its budget and duration, and any adjustments that might be necessary in the light of lessons learned from the first cycle, including with regard to resource requirements, before the end of the seventieth session of the General Assembly, taking into full consideration the discussions on lessons learned and the way forward; decided that the meetings of the Ad Hoc Working Group of the Whole would continue to be coordinated by two co-chairs; requested the Secretary-General to review the resource requirements for the second cycle of the Regular Process and to report to Member States in advance of the seventh meeting of the Ad Hoc Working Group of the Whole; and requested the secretariat of the Regular Process to compile, subject to budgetary considerations, an inventory of available information on recent and ongoing assessments and other processes at the regional and global levels relevant to the Regular Process and to submit it to the Bureau of the Ad Ho c Working Group of the Whole by the end of February 2016. The Assembly requested the Secretary -General to convene the seventeenth meeting of the Informal Consultative Process in New

York from 13 to 17 June 2016 and recalled that, in its deliberations on th e report of the Secretary-General on oceans and the law of the sea, the Informal Consultative Process shall focus its discussions at its seventeenth meeting in 2016 on “Marine debris, plastics and microplastics”; and also recalled that it would further rev iew the effectiveness and utility of the Informal Consultative Process at its seventy -first session. The Assembly noted that the twenty-fifth Meeting of States Parties convened by the Secretary-General pursuant to resolution 69/245 would resume on 15 January 2016; and requested the Secretary-General to convene the twenty-sixth Meeting of States Parties to the Convention in New York from 20 to 24 June 2016.

The Assembly noted the information provided by the Secretary-General in response to the request in paragraph 81 of General Assembly resolution 69/245 on options for mechanisms to provide medical insurance coverage to members of the Commission, including costs; expressed its intention to continue to consider these and other options and, if necessary, to further review the terms of reference for the trust fund established pursuant to resolution 55/7 for the purpose of facilitating the participation of members of the Commission from developing States in the meetings of the Commission; and recognized the written information provided by the Secretary-General in response to the request in paragraph 84 of General Assembly resolution 69/245 on options to ensure that they have more suitable working space.

It authorized the Secretary-General, as an interim measure and subject to the availability of funds in the trust fund established pursuant to resolution 55/7 for facilitating the participation of members of the Commission from developing States in the meetings of the Commission, following the allocation of the requir ed funds to cover the costs of travel and daily subsistence allowance of the members of the Commission from developing States for the sessions of the Commission in 2016, to reimburse those members for the costs of medical travel insurance from that trust fund on a session-by-session basis and subject to a reasonable limit that the Secretary-General shall determine, based on the information regarding medical travel insurance available to him. It reviewed and amended the terms of reference, guidelines and rules for the trust fund for the purpose of facilitating the preparation of submissions to the Commission on the Limits of Continental Shelf for developing States, in particular the least developed countries and small island developing States, and compliance with article 76 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, established in accordance with resolution 55/7, and approved the convening by the Secretary-General of the fortieth, forty-first and forty-second sessions of the Commission, in New York, from 1 February to 18 March 2016, from 11 July to 26 August 2016 and from 17 October to 2 December 2016. The Assembly requested the Secretary-General to prepare a report for consideration by the Assembly at its seventy-first session on developments and issues relating to ocean affairs and the law of the sea, including the implementation of the resolution, and to prepare a separate section of the report on the topic that is the focus of the seventeenth meeting of the Informal Consultative Process (resolution 70/235, sects.

III, VII, X, XII, XIV and XVII).

At the same session, the General Assembly decided to convene the high-level United Nations Conference to Support the Implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development, to be held in Fiji from 5 to 9 June 2017, to support the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14 and decided to consider, before the end of the seventieth session of the Assembly, the modalities of the Conference in the most efficient and effective manner possible (resolution 70/226).

Documents for the seventy-first session:

(a) Report of the Secretary-General (resolution 70/235);

(b) Letter from the Co-Chairs of the Ad Hoc Working Group of the Whole addressed to the President of the General Assembly transmitting the report on the work of the Ad Hoc Working Group of the Whole on the Regular Process for Global Reporting and Assessment of the State of the Marine Environment, including Socioeconomic Aspects, at its seventh meeting (resolutions 65/37 A and 70/235);

(c) Letter from the Co-Chairs of the United Nations Open-ended Informal Consultative Process on Oceans and the Law of the Sea addressed to the President of the General Assembly transmitting the report on the work of the Informal Consultative Process at its seventeenth meeting (resolutions 54/33 and 70/235).

References for the seventieth session (agenda item 79 (a))

Report of the Secretary-General on oceans and the law of the sea (A/70/74 and Add.1) Report on the work of the Ad Hoc Working Group of the Whole on the Regular Process for Global Reporting and Assessment of the State of the Marine Environment, including Socioeconomic Aspects (A/70/418)

Letter from the Co-Chairs of the Ad Hoc Working Group of the Whole to the President of the General Assembly transmitting the summary of the first global integrated marine assessment (A/70/112)

Report on the work of the United Nations Open-ended Informal Consultative Process on Oceans and the Law of the Sea at its sixteenth meeting (A/70/78) Report of the twenty-fifth Meeting of States Parties (SPLOS/287)

Draft resolution A/70/L.22 and Add.1

Plenary meetings A/70/PV.68, 69 (jointly with sub-item (b)) and 82

Resolution 70/235

(b) Sustainable fisheries, including through the 1995 Agreement for the

Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, and related instruments At its seventieth session, the General Assembly requested the Secretary -General to:

resume the Review Conference on the 1995 Agreement for the Implementation o f the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks (“the Agreement”), convened pursuant to article 36 of the Agreement, in New York from 23 to 27 May 2016, and to render the necessary assistance and provide such services as may be required for the resumption of the Review Conference; and to convene in March 2016 a twelfth round of informal consultations of States parties to the Agreement for a duration of two days,

to serve primarily as a preparatory meeting for the resumed Review Conference. The Assembly recalled its request in paragraph 41 of resolution 69/109 that the Secretary -General submit to the resumed Review Conference an updated report to assist the Review Conference in discharging its mandate under article 36, paragraph 2, of the Agreement; and recalled its decision to conduct in 2016 a further review of the actions taken by States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in response to paragraphs 113, 117 and 119 to 124 of resolution 64/72 and paragraphs 121, 126, 129, 130 and 132 to 134 of resolution 66/68, with a view to ensuring effective implementation of the measures therein and to make further recommendations, where necessary. The Assembly also requested the Secretary -General to convene, with full conference services, without prejudice to future arrangements, a two-day workshop on 1 and 2 August 2016 in order to discuss implementation of those measures; and recalled its request for the Secretary -General to prepare a report similar in scope, length and detail to his report to the Assembly at its sixty-sixth session (A/66/307), in cooperation with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and with the assistance of an expert consultant to be hired by the Division to provide information and analysis on relevant technical and scientific issues to be covered in the report, for consideration by the Assembly at its seventy-first session, on the actions taken by States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in response to paragraphs 113, 117 and 119 to 124 of resolution 64/72 and paragraphs 121, 126, 129, 130 and 132 to 134 of resolution 66/68. The Assembly decided to include the sub-item in the provisional agenda of its seventy-first session and to consider the possibility of including this sub-item in future provisional agendas on a biennial basis (resolution 70/75).

Documents for the seventy-first session: Reports of the Secretary-General (resolution 70/75).

References for the seventieth session (agenda item 79 (b))

Draft resolution A/70/L.19 and Add.1

Plenary meetings A/70/PV.68 and 69 (jointly with sub-item (a))

Resolution 70/75