{"id":59861,"date":"2025-09-21T18:15:06","date_gmt":"2025-09-21T18:15:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/nations-ratify-first-treaty-to-protect-international-waters"},"modified":"2025-09-21T18:58:49","modified_gmt":"2025-09-21T18:58:49","slug":"nations-ratify-first-treaty-to-protect-international-waters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/nations-ratify-first-treaty-to-protect-international-waters","title":{"rendered":"Nations Ratify First Treaty to Protect International Waters"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Mauritius. <\/strong><\/span>An ocean agreement to govern the high seas was struck Friday when Morocco became the 60th nation to sign on.<\/b><\/p>\n

The high seas treaty is the first legal framework aimed at protecting marine biodiversity in international waters, which account for nearly two-thirds of the ocean and nearly half of Earth\u2019s surface. These areas, which lie beyond the jurisdiction of any single country, are vulnerable to threats including overfishing, climate change and deep-sea mining.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe high seas are the world\u2019s largest crime scene,\u201d said Johan Bergenas, senior vice president of Oceans at the World Wildlife Fund.<\/p>\n

Still, the pact\u2019s strength is uncertain as some of the world\u2019s biggest players \u2014 the US, China, Russia and Japan \u2014 have yet to ratify. The US and China have signed, signaling intent to align with the treaty\u2019s objectives without creating legal obligations, while Japan and Russia have been active in preparatory talks.<\/p>\n

Ratification triggers a 120-day countdown for the treaty to take effect. But much more work remains to flesh out how it will be implemented, financed and enforced.<\/p>\n

Lisa Speer, director of the Natural Resources Defense Council’s international oceans program, said the treaty fills a gap for protecting waters that, because they belong to no one, are \u201cthe responsibility of all of us and none of us at the same time.\u201d<\/p>\n

And failing to protect those waters could mean damage for any individual nation’s waters, she added. \u201cMarine life doesn\u2019t respect political boundaries. So fish migrate across the ocean…. Same with turtles, with seabirds, and a whole host of other marine life,\u201d Speer said. \u201cAnd so what happens in the high sea can really affect the health and resilience of the ocean within national jurisdiction, within our coastal waters.\u201d<\/p>\n

30X30<\/b><\/p>\n

The high seas are home to a vast array of marine life and play a crucial role in regulating Earth\u2019s climate \u2014 they absorb heat and carbon dioxide, and generate half the oxygen we breathe. The treaty is also essential to achieving what\u2019s known as the global \u201c30×30\u201d target \u2014 an international pledge to protect 30 percent of the planet\u2019s land and sea by 2030.<\/p>\n

The treaty creates a legal process for countries to establish marine protected areas in those waters, including rules for potentially destructive activities like deep-sea mining and geoengineering schemes. It also establishes a framework for technology-sharing, funding mechanisms and scientific collaboration among countries. Crucially, decisions under the treaty will be made multilaterally through what are known as conferences of parties (COPs) rather than by individual countries acting alone.<\/p>\n

Within one year of the treaty taking effect, countries will meet to work out the foundational questions of implementation, financing and oversight at that first COP. Only countries that ratify before COP1 will have voting rights at COP1.<\/p>\n

Some experts warn the treaty\u2019s impact could be blunted if the most powerful players on the high seas remain outside it.<\/p>\n

The treaty does not create a punitive enforcement body of its own. Instead, it largely relies on individual countries to regulate their own ships and companies.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Mauritius<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Mauritius. An ocean agreement to govern the high seas was struck Friday when Morocco became the 60th nation to sign on. The high seas treaty is the first legal framework aimed at protecting marine biodiversity in international waters, which account for nearly two-thirds of the ocean and nearly half of Earth\u2019s surface. These […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":59860,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,12],"tags":[969,6321,241,6764],"class_list":["post-59861","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-policy","tag-biodiversity","tag-marine-pollution","tag-mauritius","tag-overfishing"],"yoast_head":"\nNations Ratify First Treaty to Protect International Waters - Mauritius<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"An ocean agreement to govern the high seas was struck Friday when Morocco became the 60th nation to sign on. 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