Vietnam underlines multilateral dialogue, cooperation to ensure universal value of UNCLOS
(VOVWORLD) - Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN, has called on member countries of the UNCLOS Group of Friends to join efforts to contribute to solving challenges related to seas and oceans and successfully implement Sustainable Development Goal No.14 which focuses on the conservation and sustainable use of oceans, waters and marine resources.
 Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang speaks at the meeting of the UNCLOS Group of Friends, New York, June 12, 2023. (Photo: VNA) |
Ambassador Giang chaired the annual meeting of the Group of Friends of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea held on Monday on the occasion of the ongoing 33rd meeting of the States Parties to the UNCLOS (SPLOS 33) at the UN headquarters in New York.
He emphasised that the group will continue promoting multilateral dialogue and cooperation in the implementation and protection of the universality of the 1982 convention, and described it as a comprehensive legal framework governing all activities related to seas and oceans.
Cornel Feruță, Chair of SPLOS 33, expressed strong support for the value of UNCLOS 1982 in strengthening international law compliance; and appreciated contributions by the group in general and Vietnam in particular in promoting cooperation in the enforcement of UNCLOS and ocean governance.
The 115-member group was the first initiated by Vietnam, which lobbied for the establishment together with Germany and joined the team of 12 core members including Canada, Denmark, and the Netherlands.