Safeguarding, protecting, and ensuring the sustainability of marine areas located offshore, which according to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea are located beyond "200 nautical miles from the coasts, over the continental shelf and is the common heritage of mankind"[1] (EACNUR, 2019), and are part of international waters, is the main objective of the Treaty for the Protection of the High Seas.
Its entry into force will begin once 60 countries sign and ratify it, so the international document can be signed as of September 20 of this year, in the premises of the United Nations Organization.
The Treaty corresponds, among others, to the following essential antecedents for its implementation, being the first, to take care of the ocean, the second, to establish the legal framework for Goal 14, "Life under water"[2] (UNDP, 2023), specifically the conservation of the oceans, and the third, the "Kunming-Montreal Framework for Ecological Diversity"[3] (UNEP, 2022), which aims to protect the biodiversity of the environment.
This Treaty contains the "30x30 objective"[4] (Reuters, 2023), in which it was negotiated to guarantee the care and conservation of 30% of the planet's water by 2030, allowing oceanic cooperation among all the countries of the world.
In turn, the document in question contains the care of "critical areas in the sea"[5] (Reuters, 2023), which will help counteract climate change, due to the fact that water in the oceans is fundamental to "produce oxygen through phytoplankton."[6] (Reuters, 2023)
The Treaty for the Protection of the High Seas is a very important international instrument of cooperation because for the first time the protection of the oceans beyond the coasts of nations is being regulated.
[1] (EACNUR, 2019) ¿Qué son las aguas internacionales y qué características tienen? Rescatado el 20 de junio de 2023 de la página web: https://eacnur.org/es/blog/que-son-las-aguas-internacionales-tc-alt45664n-o-pstn-o-pst [2] (UNDP, 2023) Life Below Water. Rescued on June 20th, 2023, from the web page: https://www.undp.org/sustainable-development-goals/below-water?gclid=EAIaIQobChMItN7xs_rS_wIVEgWtBh0X3wYuEAAYASAAEgIyx_D_BwE [3] (UNEP, 2022) Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. Authors: CONVENTION ON BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY (CBD). https://www.unep.org/resources/kunming-montreal-global-biodiversity-framework [4] (Reuters, 2023) Changing Tides. Rescatado el 20 de Junio de 2023, de la página web: https://www.reuters.com/graphics/GLOBAL-ENVIRONMENT/OCEANS/jnvwyjomdvw/ [5] Ibidem [6] Ibidem
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