Philippines Reaffirms its Advocacy for Rules-based Order Governed by International Law in Marine and Maritime Domain at Third United Nations Oceans Conference

Assistant Secretary Marshall Louis M. Alferez delivering an intervention on behalf of the Philippines at the Ocean Action Panel No. 10 at the Third United Nations Oceans Conference (UNOC3) on 13 June 2025, at the UNOC3 Blue Zone

NICE 02 July 2025 – The Philippines, through Assistant Secretary Marshall Louis M. Alferez, reaffirmed its advocacy for a rules-based international order anchored on the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) as the legal framework for all activities in the ocean, at the Ocean Action Panel 10 of the Third United Nations Oceans Conference (UNOC3) on 13 June 2025, at the UNOC3 Blue Zone in Port Lympia, Nice, France.

 Delivering remarks on behalf of the Philippines, Assistant Secretary Alferez, made a clarion call to all States, organizations, and stakeholders that achieving substantive progress on the UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14 is “fundamentally premised on: (1) adhering to international law, especially UNCLOS, and not selectively implementing it; (2) strengthening multilateralism and not weakening it; and (3) affirming the principles of equality, transparency, equity and inclusivity in our ocean work, and not diminishing them.”

 He stressed that the international community “must continue to champion compliance with decisions and rulings duly rendered through the compulsory dispute settlement mechanisms under UNCLOS, such as the 2016 South China Sea Arbitral Award, as well as respect for the advisory opinions that provide authoritative clarity to its provisions, such as the 2024 ITLOS Advisory Opinion on Case No. 31 on Climate Change and International Law.”

UNOC3 consisted of ten (10) Ocean Action Panels, which featured 10 different thematic panel discussions that focus on commitments and actions to support the implementation of SDG 14, including through strengthened cooperation, building on existing successful partnerships and stimulating innovative and concrete new ones.

Ocean Action Panel 10 featured a panel discussion on the subject “enhancing the conservation and sustainable use of the oceans and their resources by implementing international law as reflected in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.” The panel consisted of international law experts and international civil servants, including Ms. Leticia Carvalho, Secretary General of the International Seabed Authority (ISA); Ms. Grethel Aguilar, Director-General of the International Union for Conservation of Nature; and Ms. Lan-Anh Nguyen, Vice President of the Asian Society of International Law and UNCLOS Annex VII Arbitrator.

The Philippines, represented by delegates from various government agencies, also actively participated and delivered substantive interventions in the other Ocean Action Panels throughout UNOC3. END