Ukraine signs historic agreement on ocean protection

On August 29, Ukraine’s Minister of Economy, Environment and Agriculture Oleksiy Sobolev signed the High Seas Treaty (BBNJ Agreement) at UN Headquarters in New York, joining the global framework for protecting ocean ecosystems and ensuring the sustainable use of marine resources in international waters, the ministry reported on its website.

The High Seas Treaty, adopted in 2023, is the third implementing agreement under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Its purpose is to establish uniform global rules for safeguarding biodiversity in an area that covers two-thirds of the world’s oceans.

Negotiations on the treaty lasted nearly 20 years.

The agreement provides for the creation of marine protected areas covering 30% of the world’s oceans, the introduction of an environmental impact assessment mechanism, and fair access to marine genetic resources.

So far, 141 countries have signed the treaty (Moldova did so three days before Ukraine), and 55 of them have already ratified it. Ukraine now has 120 days to complete its ratification process.

• Back in 2016, the World Conservation Congress proposed protecting 30% of the world’s oceans. This target was officially adopted in December 2022 at the Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity.
• Since 1970, global wildlife populations — including mammals, birds, reptiles, and fish — have fallen by 60%.