New York (VNA) – Permanent Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Vu has underscored that ensuring maritime safety, security and freedom not only helps maintain peace, stability and order at sea, but also underpins trade, energy security, food security and global economic stability.
With nearly 90% of global goods transported by sea, keeping vital shipping lanes open is essential to peace and sustainable development across all regions, the official said while chairing a symposium on the sidelines of the 36th Meeting of States Parties to UNCLOS (SPLOS 36) in New York on June 16.
Vu, head of the Vietnamese delegation to SPLOS 36, affirmed that the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) has established a comprehensive legal framework governing maritime activities, ensuring a balance of interests among nations.
The symposium drew more than 120 representatives from various countries and international organisations, as well as scholars and experts from across the world.
Professor Alexander Proelss of Germany’s University of Hamburg said that one of the most important practical achievements of UNCLOS is the establishment and regulation of maritime navigation regimes, particularly the right of innocent passage in territorial waters and the right of transit through international straits. UNCLOS is considered to have created a close balance between the sovereignty of coastal states and the freedom of navigation of the international community, while still allowing for necessary exceptions such as protecting the marine environment and preventing pollution.
Nihan Unlu, Deputy Director/Head of the Legal Affairs Office under the Legal Affairs and External Relations Division at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), noted that global shipping is increasingly affected by geopolitical tensions, cybersecurity risks, digitalisation and growing environmental requirements.
She emphasised that the success of international maritime transport depends on safe, secure and efficient operations under a globally harmonised legal framework.
According to Unlu, the IMO has developed and updated international standards covering maritime safety, security, search and rescue, seafarer competence and environmental protection, while also addressing new issues such as autonomous vessels, electronic certification systems and fraudulent ship registrations.
Discussions also focused on key legal concepts, including innocent passage, transit passage through international straits, and freedoms of navigation and overflight.
Delegates exchanged views on maritime developments in different regions and called for enhanced dialogue, capacity building, data sharing and coordination among states, international organisations and relevant stakeholders to ensure maritime safety, security and freedom.
The symposium was initiated by Vietnam and co-sponsored by 16 countries from both within and outside the core membership of the Group of Friends of UNCLOS.
Established in 2021 at the initiative of Vietnam and Germany, the Group of Friends of UNCLOS is an informal and flexible mechanism for dialogue and coordination aimed at strengthening cooperation among countries sharing common interests on specific issues at the United Nations and other multilateral forums.
It now comprises 115 member states from all geographical regions. Its 12 core members are Argentina, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Jamaica, Kenya, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Oman, Senegal, South Africa and Vietnam./.
