Madame President,

On draft resolution A/80/L.17 on sustainable fisheries, Türkiye has joined the consensus, as it is fully committed to the conservation, management and sustainable use of marine living resources, and attaches great importance to regional cooperation to that end.

Türkiye is not a party to UNCLOS and the UN Fish Stocks Agreement.

Therefore, Türkiye dissociates itself from the references made in the resolution to UNCLOS and UNFSA. Türkiye’s participation in the negotiations of the draft resolution on sustainable fisheries or the approval of it cannot be construed as a change in the legal position of Türkiye with regard to UNCLOS and UNFSA.

Madame President,

On draft resolution A/80/L.22, entitled “Oceans and the law of the sea”, Türkiye asked for a vote and has, once again, voted against the resolution.

As we have expressed before on previous iterations, Türkiye agrees, in principle, with the general content of the resolution. We particularly appreciate that the resolution recognizes the importance of the conservation and sustainable use of the oceans, seas and their resources in achieving the goals contained in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

In this regard, we welcome the adoption of the amendment presented by Brazil for OP200 regarding COP30 held in Belem, Brazil. We applaud Brazil for hosting this significant Conference and grateful for their efforts, which should be welcomed.

Türkiye will be honoured to host COP31 next year in Antalya. We are determined to ensure an equitable and inclusive conference. We will be happy to cooperate with Australia and put an emphasis on climate related issues in the Mediterranean, alongside the Pacific and all regions impacted by climate change.

Türkiye has also signed the BBNJ Agreement and welcomes its upcoming entry into force and the adoption of the resolution on BBNJ.

However, due to the continued reluctance of certain delegations to recognize our concerns as a Non-Party, aiming for a more inclusive and balanced language and the unchanged nature of the references to UNCLOS, we were obliged, once again to call for a vote on this resolution.

Türkiye has consistently expressed that it does not agree with the view that the Convention has a “universal and unified character”. We also maintain that UNCLOS is not the only legal framework which regulates all activities in the oceans and seas. These concerns and objections have also been raised by a number of other States throughout the years.

Türkiye remains ready and willing to continue working with Member States towards the aim of ensuring that this resolution is adopted without a vote. However, until we can find an appropriate solution that will duly address the concerns of Non-Parties, the existing UNCLOS language cannot be referred to as “agreed language” and cannot set a precedent for other UN resolutions.

President,

We would also like to take this opportunity to note that the reasons which have prevented Türkiye from being a party to UNCLOS remain valid. Türkiye supports international efforts to establish a regime of the seas that is based on the principle of equity and is acceptable to all States. However, in our opinion, the Convention does not provide sufficient safeguards for particular geographical situations and, as a consequence, does not take into consideration the conflicting interests and sensitivities stemming from special circumstances. Furthermore, the Convention does not allow States to make reservations to its articles.

Hence, although we agree with the Convention in its general intent, and with most of its provisions, we are unable to become a party to it due to those prominent shortcomings.

In this regard, Türkiye also wishes to draw attention to the risks posed by erroneous interpretations of international law and the invocation of UNCLOS under the pretext of justifying maximalist claims, particularly with regards to maritime jurisdiction areas.

Türkiye supports the resolution of maritime disputes on the basis of principle of equity in accordance with international law and jurisprudence of international courts. We hope that all relevant actors will adopt a similar approach in order to promote regional and international peace and stability.

Additionally, Türkiye declares that there does not exist any group of people in its territory which could be considered as “indigenous peoples”.

Finally, we would like to thank the coordinator of the informal consultations, Ms. Natalie Morris-Sharma, and DOALOS, for their efforts in the process.

I thank you.