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Still, the pact’s strength is uncertain as some of the world’s biggest players — the US, China, Russia and Japan — have yet to ratify. The US and China have signed, signalling intent to align with the treaty’s objectives without creating legal obligations, while Japan and Russia have been active in preparatory talks.
An ocean agreement to govern the high seas was struck when Morocco became the 60th nation to sign on. The high seas treaty is the first legal framework aimed at protecting marine biodiversity in international waters, which account for nearly two-thirds of the ocean and nearly half of Earth’s surface. These areas, which lie beyond the jurisdiction of any single country, are vulnerable to threats including overfishing, climate change and deep-sea mining.
Still, the pact’s strength is uncertain as some of the world’s biggest players — the US, China, Russia and Japan — have yet to ratify. The US and China have signed, signaling intent to align with the treaty’s objectives without creating legal obligations, while Japan and Russia have been active in preparatory talks.
Ratification triggers a 120-day countdown for the treaty to take effect. But much more work remains to flesh out how it will be implemented, financed and enforced. Lisa Speer, director of the Natural Resources Defense Council’s international oceans program, said the treaty fills a gap for protecting waters that, because they belong to no one, are “the responsibility of all of us and none of us at the same time.”
The high seas are home to a vast array of marine life and play a crucial role in regulating Earth’s climate — they absorb heat and carbon dioxide, and generate half the oxygen we breathe. The treaty is also essential to achieving what’s known as the global “30×30” target — an international pledge to protect 30 percent of the planet’s land and sea by 2030.
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The treaty creates a legal process for countries to establish marine protected areas in those waters, including rules for potentially destructive activities like deep-sea mining and geoengineering schemes. It also establishes a framework for technology-sharing, funding mechanisms and scientific collaboration among countries. Crucially, decisions under the treaty will be made multilaterally through what are known as conferences of parties (COPs) rather than by individual countries acting alone.
