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Nations ratify the world’s first treaty to protect international waters
The treaty will legally protect marine biodiversity in international waters, aiming to safeguard nearly two-thirds of the ocean and help achieve the 30% protection target by 2030.
- On September 19, Morocco became the 60th country to ratify the High Seas Treaty, triggering a 120-day countdown to its entry into force on January 17, 2026.
- Decades of overfishing and warming prompted global calls for stronger rules as currently just 1% of the high seas are protected, and the treaty was adopted by United Nations Member States in June 2023.
- United Nations officials note the pact creates legal tools including Marine Protected Areas, environmental impact assessments, benefit-sharing for marine genetic resources, and capacity building across two-thirds of the ocean.
- Ratification triggers a 120-day countdown and sets a timetable for the first COP, where only countries that ratify before the COP will have voting rights; the treaty lacks a punitive enforcement body and major players have not ratified.
- The treaty helps advance the 30x30 conservation pledge by creating a legal pathway to protect 30% by 2030; experts say first MPAs could appear in late 2028 or 2029, while the High Seas Alliance urges universal ratification and rapid implementation.
174 Articles
174 Articles
‘Super big deal’: High seas treaty reaches enough ratifications to become law
A major treaty establishing a framework for the world’s nations to jointly manage marine conservation in international waters, which cover about half of the Earth’s surface, has reached enough ratifications to become international law. It will come into force in January. The deal, known as the agreement on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ), was reached in 2023 with mu…
Now ratified, the Treaty for the Protection of the High Seas will enter into force in January 2026. It will provide means of action for the conservation and management of marine biodiversity, in the vast part of the oceans that nobody owns. It is not in a position to prevent the exploitation of the seabed.
15 years of negotiations, another 2.5 years for necessary accessions: a historic agreement to protect the world's oceans has taken another hurdle.
High seas treaty 101 — what it covers, why it matters, and how it could reshape the future of the world’s oceans
NEW YORK, Sept 21 — The high seas treaty aims to protect marine life in ocean waters worldwide that no country can claim as its own.The treaty, which UN members states adopted in June 2023, is set to take effect under international law in January 2026 after enough countries passed the bar for ratification on Friday.Here are the key points:International watersThe treaty covers international waters that fall outside any single country’s exclusive …
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