Nice : French President Emmanuel Macron announced that the international treaty for the high seas, which focuses on preserving marine areas beyond national jurisdiction and ensuring sustainable use, has garnered enough support to come into effect in early 2026.
In his speech at the United Nations third Ocean Conference in Nice on Monday, Macron said that 55 countries have completed ratification of the treaty. He added that approximately 15 more countries are in the process of ratification, with the goal of completing this by the end of the year, thus achieving the necessary number for the treaty to take effect.
The high seas treaty, adopted in 2023, allows countries to establish marine protected areas in international waters, which cover nearly two thirds of the oceans. Currently, only about one percent of these waters, known as the high seas, are protected.
Earlier, António Guterres, Secretary General of the United Nations, urged countries worldwide to ratify the treaty, warning that human activity is destroying ocean ecosystems. He cautioned that overfishing, plastic pollution, and rising sea temperatures threaten sensitive ecosystems and the people who depend on them.
