EU Presidency Statement - Oceans and Coastal Areas

Mr Co-chairman,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union.

As stated earlier in this meeting, the EU believes that strengthening co-ordination at all levels in matters related to the oceans and seas is the overarching purpose of the oceans consultative process. In this context, the improvement of inter-agency co-ordination and co-operation on ocean affairs is one of the main purposes of this process, as it is referred to in General Assembly resolution 54/33, based on the results of CSD VII. The EU, therefore, recognises the importance of the participation of the Subcommittee on Oceans and Coastal Areas of the Administrative Committee on Coordination (ACC-SOCA) in the second meeting of the oceans consultative process, and welcomes the exchange of views with the Chairman of the Subcommittee.

The EU also recalls its earlier statement on its own commitment to further improve its internal co-ordination on oceans matters, and is of the opinion that, both for developed countries and developing countries, the preparation for the participation in the oceans consultative process is an ideal occasion to reassess progress in internal co-ordination.

In General Assembly resolution 55/7 there is a request for more effective collaboration and co-ordination between the relevant parts of the Secretariat of the United Nations and the UN as a whole, in particular in ensuring the effectiveness, transparency and responsiveness of the Subcommittee on Oceans and Coastal Areas. The EU believes that in order to meet this request, there is a need for improved inter-agency co-operation and cross-sectoral co-ordination within the UN system. The EU strongly encourages increased co-operation between UN agencies and programmes, as well as between UN agencies and relevant regional organisations. There is also a need for enhanced cross-sectoral co-operation and co-ordination at regional levels, for example between the Regional Fisheries Organisations and the Regional Seas Programmes.

Mr Co-chairman,

The EU has taken note of the ongoing restructuring of the ACC system, including a review of the work of the ACC Subcommittee on Oceans and Coastal Areas, amongst other subcommittees. In the view of the European Union, the role of the Subcommittee on Oceans and Coastal Areas in co-ordinating the activities on oceans affairs of the agencies and organisations should be strengthened. The process of ensuring more effective co-operation and co-ordination between the relevant parts of the UN system on oceans is, and needs to be an ongoing process. This process needs an adequate structure with adequate resources.

The EU welcomes the co-operation and co-ordination reflected in the work on the United Nations Atlas of the Oceans, and considers that SOCA should continue to take effective steps for better co-operation and co-ordination on the various activites of the UN agencies and organisations. To this end, the EU reiterates its opinion that a review of activities and problems encountered by the relevant UN agencies, organisations and programmes should be carried out under that Subcommittee. Such a review would enable the Subcommittee to identify areas where adjustments should be considered in order to avoid gaps, overlaps and inconsistencies, and would facilitate an overview of the status of international co-operation in ocean affairs.

The EU reiterates its support for the Secretary General's report on Oceans and the Law of the Sea, and welcomes the improvements made. In this context, the EU underlines the usefulness of a specific chapter on international co-operation and co-ordination. At the same time, we would like to see an increase in the analytical content in the report regarding international co-operation and co-ordination.

Mr Co-chairman,

Let me finally mention an area of activites closely related to the oceans consultative process. Space applications contribute to the protection of the Earth's environment by providing and disseminating critical information on the state of the Earth. Earth observation satellites provides an important and unique source of data for the study of the Earth's system, including the oceans.

Against this background, the EU believes that the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (OOSA) would have been able to make a valuable contribution to this meeting, not only to the use of space applications in marine science such as remote sensing by satellites, but also to the overall co-ordination of activities for the sustainable use of the oceans. The EU would therefore encourage the Secretariat to invite the OOSA to participate in the preparations for next year's session of the oceans consultative process.

Thank you, Mr Co-chairman.

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• EU Presidency Statement - Law of the Sea (9/4/2002)
• EU Presidency Statement - Oceans and law of the sea (26/10/2000)