ISA: Monaco reaffirms its opposition to deep sea mining

The 28th session of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) was held in Kingston (Jamaica) from 10th to 28th July 2023, in the presence of the representative of the Principality of Monaco.

The ISA* is one of the three bodies created by the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. At this 28th session, discussions focused primarily on the draft regulations on the exploitation of deep-sea mineral resources.

Despite the willingness of certain countries to speed up the process, many delegations expressed their concern about the potential approval of a work plan for the exploitation of these resources in the absence of sound regulations accompanied by the necessary environmental guarantees.

The Principality made it clear that no work plan could be approved unless it included a clear regulatory framework taking into account reliable scientific data. The IAMF will have to continue its work on this very sensitive issue at its forthcoming meetings.

* All the States Parties to the 1982 Convention, including Monaco, are ipso facto members of the Authority, i.e. the 169 current members (168 States plus the European Union). Monaco was among the first to join the coalition of States (Brazil, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Micronesia, Finland, France, Germany, Panama, Portugal, New Zealand, Switzerland and Vanuatu) in favour of the protection of the deep seabed: "Call for the Deep", which indicates that the precautionary principle or approach should guide the work when it comes to deciding how to proceed with deep seabed mining.

Source: Department of Communications / Government of Monaco