Summary
On Friday, 21 July, plenary resumed at 3:45 pm. Chair Duarte offered draft recommendations arising from informal bilateral consultations, clarifying that: the elements of the draft text of an international legally binding instrument (ILBI) do not reflect consensus; section A includes non-exclusive elements that generated convergence among most delegations; section B highlights some of the main issues on which there is divergence of views; and both sections are for reference purposes because they do not reflect all options discussed and are without prejudice to states’ positions during the negotiations. In addition, the draft included: a recommendation to the UN General Assembly to take a decision, as soon as possible, on the convening of an intergovernmental conference (IGC), under the auspices of the UN, to consider the PrepCom recommendations on the elements and to elaborate the text of an ILBI under the Convention; and an indication that the titles of the two sections be removed (namely, “elements of an ILBI draft text” and “elements requiring most attention towards further progress in the development of an ILBI draft text”) . Plenary was immediately suspended to allow for regional consultations.
7:25 pm: regional consultations are still ongoing
8:59 pm: plenary resumes
9:10 pm: plenary adopts recommendations to UN General Assembly
10:01 pm: Chair Duarte gaveled the meeting to a close
The Earth Negotiations Bulletin summary and analysis of PrepCom 4 will be available on Monday, 24 July 2017, online at: http://enb.iisd.org/oceans/bbnj/prepcom4/
IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage, daily reports, and a summary and analysis report from the 4th Session of the Preparatory Committee Established by the UN General Assembly Resolution 69/292: Development of an International Legally Binding Instrument under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction. The summary and analysis report is now available in HTML and PDF.
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Dais applaudes the conclusion of PrepCom 4
Peter Thomson, President of the UN General Assembly
Chair Carlos Sobral Duarte, Brazil, gaveled the meeting to a close at 10:01 pm
L-R: Peter Thomson, President of the UN General Assembly; Barbara Boechat, Brazil; Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UNDOALOS; Chair Carlos Sobral Duarte, Brazil; Alice Hicuburundi, UNDOALOS; and Charlotte Salpin, UNDOALOS
Chair Carlos Sobral Duarte, Brazil, in discussion with John Brincat, EU
L-R: Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UNDOALOS; Chair Carlos Sobral Duarte, Brazil; Barbara Boechat, Brazil; Alice Hicuburundi, UNDOALOS; and Charlotte Salpin, UNDOALOS
Delegates waiting for the resumption of PrepCom 4
Essam Yassin Mohammed, Eritrea (right), in a conversation with delegates from Cameroon
L-R: Elizabeth Rodríguez Santiago, American Society of International Law, confers with Stella Bartolini Cavicchi, World Ocean Council
Delegates from Iceland reviewing draft text
Delegates from the African Group reviewing draft text
Delegates from Norway and Iceland consulting
Delegates from the African Group consulting
Delegates from Canada consulting
L-R: Zentaro Naganuma, Japan, with Ma Xinmin, China
L-R: Evan Bloom, US, with Zentaro Naganuma, Japan
L-R: Charlotte Salpin, UNDOALOS, with Alfonso Ascencio-Herrera, International Seabed Authority (ISA)
L-R: Alain Tellier, Canada, with
Ma Xinmin, China
L-R: Zentaro Naganuma, Japan, with Kjell Kristian Egge, Norway
L-R: Alain Tellier, Canada, confers with Chair Carlos Sobral Duarte, Brazil
Chair Carlos Sobral Duarte, Brazil, with Matthías Pálsson, Iceland
L-R Maxim Musikhin, Russian Federation and Larisa Chernysheva, Russian Federation, in conversation with Chair Carlos Sobral Duarte, Brazil
Chair Carlos Sobral Duarte, Brazil (right), in discussions with Evan Bloom, US
Duncan Currie, Greenpeace (center), with delegates from the Russian Federation
L-R: Tallash Kantai, IISD Reporting Services, in conversation with Matthías Pálsson, Iceland
L-R: Tidiani Couma, Joëlle Casanova, and Florian Botto, Monaco
Delegates from China
Delegates from the Pacific Small Island Developing States (PSIDS)
Delegates from Latin America and the Caribbean
Delegates from the African Group
Participants from the High Seas Alliance