"No More Wild West" - Macron Advocates for High Seas Treaty, Slams Trump
Macron advocates for oceanic treaties - remaining firm with Trump's stance
The UN Ocean Conference is currently underway in Nice, bringing together representatives from 130 countries. The core objective? To establish protected zones in international waters, something that was previously left lawless. France and Costa Rica are hosting the event which lasts until June 13th.
French President Emmanuel Macron expressed optimism about the treaty's ratification, stating, "The agreement will be implemented, it's done." Thirteen more countries have pledged to sign the agreement prior to the conference, meeting the necessary 60 country threshold for the treaty to be enacted.
The agreement,known as the High Seas Treaty, will encourage designated protected areas in the high seas. This is a hot topic at the conference.
Oceanic Noise Pollution Concerns
Leaders from 56 nations were initially set to attend the conference opening, including Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Chinese Vice President Han Zheng, and UN Secretary-General António Guterres. Guterres condemned the seabed becoming the "Wild West." Even though the US initially hesitated, they sent Edward Russo, the White House environmental task force chief, in the end.
Trump Called Out
Macron took aim at the US in his opening speech stating, "The seabed is not for sale, just as Greenland is not for grabs." A reference to US President Donald Trump’s pursuit of deep-sea mining and an annexation attempt on the world’s largest island, Greenland.
A coalition of approximately 30 states supporting a temporary ban on deep-sea mining will expand at the conference. Germany is one of the supporter states. Scientists are apprehensive about the exploitation of so-called manganese nodules as it could irreversibly destroy untouched marine ecosystems. "The minerals located on the seabed outside of national waters are the common heritage of mankind," as stated by the coalition's statement.
Germany's Self-Commitments
Germany, led by Environment Minister Carsten Schneider, is set to present self-commitments during the conference. These commitments include removing old munitions from the North and Baltic Seas, as well as supporting partner countries like Brazil, Indonesia, and Senegal in establishing high seas protected areas.
Combatting Plastic Waste
The aim of the Nice conference is also to prepare for the upcoming plastic treaty negotiation round in August. Schneider emphasized that the ocean severely suffers from plastic waste, stating, "What we give back to the oceans is far too often only our plastic waste. That must change."
Schneider took part in the ship parade on Sunday aboard the new research ship "Malizia Explorer" of extreme sailor Boris Herrmann, marking the start of the Ocean Summit.
- Environmental Protection
- Oceans
- Marine Research
- France
- Emmanuel Macron
- Plastic Waste
Fun Fact:
Did you know? Plastic waste kills millions of marine animals yearly. Abandoned fishing gear accounts for around 640,000 tonnes of plastic waste in the oceans[1]. 🐟
Sources
- Global Ghost Gear Initiative. (2025). Ghost Fishing: Mitigation Options, Challenges and Opportunities. https://www.worldwildlife.org/publications/ghost-fishing-mitigation-options-challenges-and-opportunities
- United Nations. (2025). Agreement on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ Agreement). https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/oceans/conventions/bbnj/
- United Nations. (2025). UN Ocean Conference - Nice, France. https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/oceanconference/nice2025/
- United Nations. (2025). Treaty Process. https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/oceans/conventions/bbnj/treaty-process/
- Greenpeace. (2025). High Seas Treaty: Everything You Need to Know. https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/act/oceans/stop-deep-sea-mining/high-seas-treaty-everything-you-need-to-know/
- The High Seas Treaty, a key point of discussion at the UN Ocean Conference, encourages small and medium-sized undertakings in environmental science to advocate for designated protected areas in the high seas, particularly in the context of climate-change and oceanic conservation.
- In his opening speech, French President Emmanuel Macron, during the conference, called for the ratification of the High Seas Treaty, expressing concern over the potential exploitation of the ocean's resources, particularly through deep-sea mining activities, which could have irreversible impacts on untouched marine ecosystems.
- Leaders from various countries, including Germany, are presenting self-commitments at the conference, focusing on initiatives such as removing old munitions from the North and Baltic Seas, supporting small and medium-sized undertakings in establishing high seas protected areas, and combatting plastic waste, which is a major contributor to the general-news of oceanic pollution and the harm it poses to marine life.
