STATEMENT BY AMBASSADOR BURHAN GAFOOR, PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF THE REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE TO THE UNITED NATIONS ON AGENDA ITEM 74, ON OCEANS AND THE LAW OF THE SEA, GENERAL ASSEMBLY, 10 DECEMBER 2019

Mr President, 

1. Today is a significant day for our oceans.  On this day in 1982, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea was opened for signature in Montego Bay, Jamaica.  On that day, the Convention was signed by 119 countries, which set a record for the highest number of signatories on the opening day for signature of any Convention.  Today, there are 163 parties to the Convention, and its universal and unified character is widely recognised.  This year also marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the entry into force of the Convention.  As the General Assembly debates this agenda item on oceans and the law of the sea today, let us also take time to commemorate this milestone of a Convention that has stood the test of time and that continues to be the bedrock of oceans governance.

Mr President,

2. I turn now to the draft resolution contained in document A/74/L.22.  Singapore had the honour to coordinate the informal consultations on this draft resolution and I am pleased to introduce this draft resolution on behalf of my colleague, Ms. Natalie Morris-Sharma, Director of the International Legal Division at the Ministry of Law in Singapore, who coordinated the informal consultations.  I wish to place on record my appreciation for the support and constructive engagement of all delegations, including the small group facilitators, who enabled consensus to be reached during the informal consultations on all of the paragraphs I also thank the Division for Oceans Affairs and the Law of the Sea for their outstanding support throughout the process.

Mr President,

3. This resolution remains one of the most important and comprehensive resolutions on oceans and law of the sea adopted annually by the General Assembly.  It covers a broad spectrum of issues and activities.  This year, the informal consultations were held over nine days, in two parts – from 1 to 4 October and 20 to 26 November 2019.  Negotiations were, once again, intense.  I will highlight, by way of example, eight issues from the resolution that emerged from this year’s negotiations, without any intention of being comprehensive or exhaustive.  

4. First, the resolution notes with satisfaction the 25th anniversary of the entry into force of the Convention and the commemorations by the Meeting of States Parties to the Convention, as well as by the International Seabed Authority (“the Authority”).

5. Second, the resolution takes stock of the work of the Authority.  Amongst others, the Authority had approved the thirtieth plan of work for exploration for polymetallic nodules, and launched the International Seabed Authority database.  The resolution also welcomes the progress of the work of the Authority on draft regulations for exploitation of mineral resources in the Area, and encourages the Authority to continue its work on the draft regulations as a matter of priority.  

6. Third, the conditions of service of members of the Commission were much discussed once again.  This year’s resolution expresses, among other things, the intention to continue to consider options for mechanisms to provide medical insurance coverage to members of the Commission, and authorises the use of the trust fund to reimburse the costs of the medical insurance premium. 

7. Fourth, the resolution speaks to climate change and sea-level rise, which were issues subject to considerable deliberation during the informal consultations.  The resolution notes with concern the impacts of climate change on the oceans and the cryosphere, which low-lying islands, in particular small island developing States, coasts and coastal communities are particularly exposed to.  It also notes with concern the findings of the Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (“IPCC”), as well as the Summary for Policy Makers.  In addition, the resolution takes note of the decision by the International Law Commission to include the topic “Sea-level rise in relation to international law” in its programme of work.  It also decides that the Informal Consultative Process shall focus its discussions at its twenty-first meeting, in 2020, on the theme “Sea-level rise and its impacts”. 

8. Fifth, the resolution welcomes the holding of the second and third sessions held earlier this year of the Intergovernmental Conference on marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction, commonly referred to as “BBNJ”.  The resolution takes note of the substantive discussions that addressed the topics identified in the package agreed in 2011.  It further takes note that the President of the Conference will prepare, as part of the preparation for the fourth session of the Conference, a revised draft text of an agreement.

9. Sixth, the resolution notes the discussions at the twentieth meeting of the Informal Consultative Process, on the theme of Ocean Science and the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development.  The matter of the Decade will be taken up again next year, as the International Oceanographic Commission (“IOC”) is preparing the implementation plan for the Decade.  Steps taken by the IOC in this regard is welcomed in the resolution, and the resolution further requests that the IOC continue to provide information on the development plan, and present it to the General Assembly at its seventy-fifth session next year.

10. Seventh, with regard to the Regular Process, the resolution touches on a number of aspects.  These include the decision to launch the third cycle of the Regular Process, to cover five years, from 2021 to 2025.  

11. Finally, delegations would recall that last year, we undertook efforts to streamline and to improve the readability and overall effectiveness of the resolution.  Building on last year’s efforts, the capacity-building paragraphs of this year’s resolution were reworked to improve the resolution’s overall coherence.  Work was also undertaken to improve on the readability of Part X of the resolution on marine biodiversity.  Further, delegations continued in their efforts to identify and retire language that was outdated or duplicative.  Our intention is to continue, next year, to pursue the streamlining of the resolution.  Singapore attaches great importance to this endeavour, in line with the revitalisation of the work of the General Assembly.  In this regard, we look forward to continue working with delegations to streamline this resolution further during next year’s informal consultations.

Mr President, 

12. Before I conclude, allow me to make an oral revision of paragraph 139 of the draft resolution.  As agreed during the informal consultations on this draft resolution, the revision is intended to update two references to Security Council resolution 2442 (2018).  Following the adoption of Security Council resolution 2500 (2019) on 4 December 2019, the relevant part of paragraph 139 should read as follows: “…, notes the adoption by the Security Council of resolution 2500 (2019) on 4 December 2019, as well as the statements by the President of the Council of 25 August 2010 and of 19 November 2012, also notes that the authorization in resolution 2500 (2019) and relevant resolutions apply only with respect to the situation in Somalia …”. 

13. This concludes my introduction of the draft resolution and it gives me great pleasure to commend it to this Assembly for its adoption.  While this resolution is typically voted on each year, it remains my hope that the draft resolution can be adopted by consensus.  

Mr President, 

14. I would now like to make some remarks in my national capacity.  I would start by aligning my delegation with the statement to be delivered by Belize on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States.  As a small island nation whose survival and wellbeing are inextricably linked to oceans and the seas, Singapore is heartened to see the growing attention on oceans issues around the world.  This is evidenced by the number of oceans-related processes, as well as the heightened level of awareness, interest and involvement of all relevant stakeholders.  I wish to briefly mention three examples, which, in our view, are of particular importance.  

15. First, Singapore welcomes the decision by this Assembly to convene another UN Ocean Conference in 2020, and we express our appreciation to Kenya and Portugal for their generous offer to co-host the conference in Lisbon.  The UN Ocean Conference in 2017, which was proven to be a great success, has thus far generated more than 1500 voluntary commitments by a wide array of stakeholders, including governments, intergovernmental and non-governmental organisations, civil society, academic institutions, the scientific community and philanthropic organisations.  The upcoming conference in 2020 promises to build on this momentum by generating even more interest, awareness, and most importantly, concrete action around the world.  We need to continue to push for action to be taken on an urgent basis to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.  The conference in 2020 is an important step towards the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 14. 

16. Second, we welcome the increasing attention on the issue of sea-level rise.  Sea-level rise poses an existential threat to many countries, and is an issue of global concern.  The recent IPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate shows that global mean sea level is rising with acceleration in recent decades, and that sea level continues to rise at an increasing rate.  This year, the International Law Commission established an open-ended Study Group on sea-level rise in relation to international law, which will focus, in 2020, on the subject of sea-level rise in relation to the law of the sea.  Delegations have also agreed during the informal consultations on the draft resolution presently before us, that the Informal Consultative Process shall focus its discussions at its next meeting on the theme “Sea-level rise and its impacts”.  We welcome such efforts to increase our knowledge and understanding on this important issue, which would inform the appropriate response that needs to be taken at the national, regional and global levels. 

17. Third, Member States are in the midst of negotiating a very important agreement under the Convention, concerning BBNJ.  This is arguably one of the most important treaty-making processes in recent times, and it is a golden opportunity for us to elaborate the international rules on the conservation and sustainable use of BBNJ.  The conference held its second and third sessions this year, and has been making steady progress.  Whilst the issues in question are understandably complex and the negotiations are anything but easy, we are encouraged by the level of engagement and cooperation amongst delegations.  In many ways, this BBNJ process reminds us of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea.  At the last plenary meeting of the Third UN Conference in 1982, which finalised the Convention, the then-President of the Conference, Ambassador Tommy Koh of Singapore, stated that the successful outcome of the Conference was important for the prestige and credibility of the United Nations.  He also stated that it showed that the United Nations could be an effective forum for multilateral negotiations on issues of vital importance to all States and to the international community as a whole.  We believe that this is also true for the BBNJ process, and we are confident that delegations will prove that multilateralism is very much alive and working today.  

Mr. President, 

18. I wish to conclude by echoing the view expressed by the Secretary-General in his report (A/74/350), that international cooperation is crucial for success in addressing the challenges facing the oceans.  Indeed, challenges involving the global commons require international solutions.  None of us can address these issues alone.  I would also go one step further to say that not only do we need international cooperation, we also need greater international coherence.  With the increased attention on oceans issues and the corresponding number of processes around the world, the United Nations, as the only universal, inclusive and multilateral forum, is best placed to cohere these processes, so that collectively, we can be more coordinated and effective in our efforts. 

19. Thank you. 

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