Posted on June, 09 2025

9 June 2025, Nice: On the first day of the UN Ocean Conference, the French President, Emmanuel Macron, announced that the High Seas Treaty will soon be ratified by a sufficient number of countries to enter into force. President Macron confirmed that 50 parties (49 countries plus the EU) had submitted ratifications, while 15 countries had formally committed to joining them. The treaty, agreed in 2023, will enter into force 120 days after the 60th country has ratified it. 

The High Seas Treaty, also known as the agreement on Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction or 'BBNJ', is necessary to implement the Global Biodiversity Framework, which commits countries to protect and conserve at least 30% of the ocean, and ensure 30% of degraded areas are under restoration, by 2030. The treaty provides for a global legal framework to establish protected areas in the high seas and mandates management plans for these areas.

Jessica Battle, Senior Global Ocean Governance and Policy Expert, said:

“This is wonderful news for the ocean and for multilateralism, and an important step towards putting biodiversity and ocean health at the heart of decision making in two-thirds of our ocean.

“Once the treaty enters into force, it will enable the establishment of networks of marine protected areas, but also ensure that no new activity with significant impact on marine life can go ahead without an impact assessment. This will help to reduce the negative impacts that fisheries, maritime transport and other inadequately regulated activities can have on fish populations, migratory species such as whales and turtles, and deep sea habitats.

For the treaty to be effective, it will need as many states as possible to come on board, and we look forward to others following suit. Only then will we see true international collaboration for ocean health in the high seas.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors
The third United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3) is a critical opportunity for the international community to transition from commitments to implementation and to make progress on delivering the urgent ocean action needed to meet the 2030 milestones under UN Sustainable Development Goals, the Global Biodiversity Framework and the Paris Agreement. 

WWF’s Team Ocean PIaybook contains 20 recommendations for halting and reversing the loss of nature in the ocean in a fair and equitable way. UNOC3 represents a chance to make progress on these recommendations, including: 

• Implementation of the ocean-related elements of the Global Biodiversity Framework, including to protect, conserve and equitably govern at least 30% of the ocean. 
• Timely ratification and effective implementation of the WTO Fisheries Subsidies Agreement, and progress towards a more comprehensive fisheries subsidies agreement.
• Timely ratification and effective implementation of the UN High Seas Treaty, with a particular focus on progress towards networks of high seas MPAs. 
• Securing a robust UN Plastics Treaty consistent with our key policy priorities. 
• Implementation of ocean-climate solutions through the UNFCCC and national climate plans.
• Adoption of a moratorium on deep seabed mining at  the International Seabed Authority. 

More information about WWF’s recommendations and events at UNOC3 is available here.

France and Costa Rica are co-hosting the third United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3) in Nice 9-13 June 2025. The conference is focusing on “accelerating action and mobilizing all actors to conserve and sustainably use the ocean” and will support the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14, life below water. It brings together UN member states, local authorities, civil society, the private sector, the scientific community, Indigenous Peoples and local communities. Previous UN Ocean Conferences were held in 2017 in New York and in 2022 in Lisbon. The official programme for UNOC3 is available here.

Contact: news@wwfint.org