Brazil to ratify High Seas Treaty by year’s end, Lula says
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva stated on Monday (Jun. 9) that Brazil will ratify the agreement on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ), also known as the High Seas Treaty, by the end of this year. The announcement was made at the opening of the United Nations Ocean Conference in Nice, .
Brazil signed the treaty in September 2023, along with 115 other countries, but has yet to ratify it. For the treaty to enter into force, at least 60 nations must ratify it; however, according to the international organization High Seas Alliance, only 32 have done so to date.
“The adoption of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, more than four decades ago, enshrined for the first time the concept of the ‘common heritage of mankind.’ The creation of this international regime to govern maritime space was one of the greatest achievements in the history of diplomacy,” said Lula.
“Brazil is committed to ratifying the High Seas Treaty later this year to ensure the transparent and shared management of biodiversity beyond national borders. It is impossible to talk about sustainable development without including the ocean. Without protecting it, we cannot effectively combat climate change. Three billion people depend directly on marine resources for their survival. The ocean is the planet’s greatest climate regulator, due to the entire chain of life it sustains,” added the Brazilian president.
In his speech, Lula stressed that the threat of unilateralism hangs over the ocean.
“We cannot allow what happened in international trade—where rules have been eroded to the point of rendering the WTO [World Trade Organization] ineffective—to happen to the seas. Preventing the ocean from becoming a stage for geopolitical disputes is an urgent task in the pursuit of peace. Canals, gulfs, and straits should bring us together, not drive us apart,” he stated.
Ensuring ratification by 60 countries by the end of the year is one of the main objectives of the Ocean Conference, according to Olivier Poivre D'Arvor, the French presidency’s envoy to the event.
COP-30
The Brazilian president explained that Brazil will emphasize ocean conservation and sustainable use at the 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP-30), to be held in November in Belém, Pará state.
“In the last ten years, the world has produced more plastics than in the entire previous century. Plastic waste s for 80 percent of all marine pollution. Saving this biome requires a renewed commitment to implementing Sustainable Development Goal 14 (SDG 14) and the Paris Agreement. Brazil will emphasize the conservation and sustainable use of the ocean at COP-30, just as we did in our Nationally Determined Contribution,” he added.
Lula also stated that the sustainable use of the oceans will be a theme at other events, such as the Brazil-Caribbean Summit, to be held on Friday (13), and the 9th Meeting of the Zone of Peace and Cooperation of the South Atlantic, which Brazil will host in 2026.
In his speech, the president pointed out that Brazil will present seven voluntary commitments in Nice related to the protection of marine areas, maritime spatial planning, sustainable fishing, science, and education.
“In addition to eliminating deforestation by 2030, we will expand the coverage of our marine protected areas from 26 percent to 30 percent, fulfilling the Global Biodiversity Framework goal. We will also implement programs dedicated to preserving mangroves and coral reefs, and we are formulating a national strategy against plastic pollution in the ocean,” he explained.
The president also highlighted efforts to carry out marine spatial planning, promote sustainable fishing, strengthen scientific data collection through an Integrated Monitoring System, invest in research through the Comandante Ferraz Station in Antarctica, and incorporate ocean culture into school curricula.
Lula emphasized that by 2025, Brazil will have the largest number of Blue Schools in the world, encoming 515 educational institutions, 160,000 students, and 2,600 teachers.
“Ten years ago, Paris became a milestone for climate governance. Today, Nice s the path to Belém. Together with the UN, Brazil will launch a ‘Global Ethical Balance’ to mobilize thinkers, artists, intellectuals, religious leaders, youth, women, indigenous peoples, traditional communities, and Afro-descendants toward COP30. We need to create a great wave to build a more just and sustainable future,” Lula noted.
The president underscored that global leaders must understand that “the climate issue is not an invention by scientists, nor a joke by UN officials,” and reiterated the need to include climate education in elementary schools.
“The climate issue is a vital concern for the preservation of our environment, and we must make a choice. First, whether we believe in it or not. If we do, we must accept that there is no other place for us to live but planet Earth. Second, that the climate crisis has the potential to decimate humanity,” Lula concluded.
