MOMBASA, Kenya (AP) — African and Commonwealth nations called Tuesday for a swift implementation of a landmark treaty protecting the high seas, warning that despite record commitments to marine conservation, much of the world’s ocean protection still exists only on paper.
The call to action was issued at the 11th Our Ocean Conference in Mombasa, the first time an African nation has hosted the major annual event, which focuses on addressing critical ocean issues, including climate change, biodiversity and pollution.
Hundreds of delegates from Africa, the United States, the European Union, and climate-vulnerable Caribbean and Pacific island nations are taking part in the conference, where leaders have sought to position Africa as a driving force in global ocean governance.
Former U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said in his opening remarks at the Commonwealth Ocean Ministers’ Roundtable that the High Seas Treaty, which came into effect in January after ratification by 60 countries, marked a historic turning point by creating, for the first time, a legal mechanism to establish protected areas in international waters.
But he warned that progress remained too slow.
“We have 10% of the ocean under protection this year,” Kerry said. “That is worth marking. But only 3% is highly or fully protected, and the rest of the protections are, unfortunately, just lines on a map.”
Kerry said that industrial fishing fleets continue to exploit the oceans, with some vessels operating thousands of miles from home and using massive nets that indiscriminately catch marine life.
“Ratify it if you haven’t, and move immediately to implementation,” he urged countries, noting that key decisions on the future of the treaty will be taken next year.
The treaty, formally known as the Agreement on Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction, aims to help countries achieve a global target of protecting 30% of the world’s land and oceans by 2030.
The Kenyan Cabinet secretary of maritime affairs, Hassan Joho, said that governments must now shift from promises to tangible action.
“The purpose of this roundtable is not to restate ambition, but to convert such pledges into measurable results for our communities, our economies and our oceans,” Joho said.
Joho noted that since 2014, the One Ocean Conference has generated more than 2,900 pledges worth more than $169 billion. The challenge, he said, is to turn them into effective management of marine ecosystems.
The Commonwealth’s 56 member states collectively account for 36% of the world’s ocean jurisdiction and nearly half of its coral reefs, giving the bloc a unique responsibility in protecting marine resources.
Africa, meanwhile, is increasingly setting itself as a leader in ocean conservation.
Kerry praised African countries for championing transboundary marine protection and pointed to commitments by eight Gulf of Guinea nations to sustainably manage all of their waters by 2030.
“A region long described as a victim of ocean exploitation is now choosing to lead instead,” he said.
The East African nation has adopted integrated coastal management plans, expanded marine protected areas and stepped up efforts to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing. Its 640-kilometer (400-mile) coastline and vast exclusive economic zone support fisheries, tourism and other sectors that sustain millions of livelihoods.
As negotiations continue in Mombasa, delegates say the coming months will be critical in determining whether the new treaty becomes a transformative tool for ocean conservation or another set of international promises that fail to materialize.
This story has been corrected to show that the city in the dateline is Mombasa, not Nairobi.
FILE - Fish swim near coral on the ocean bed near Shimoni, Kenya, June 13, 2022. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga, File)
LONDON (AP) — A Russian warship fired warning shots near a U.K.-registered pleasure yacht in the English Channel on Tuesday, authorities said, an incident that caused no damage but illustrated heightened tensions between the two countries.
Britain's Defense Ministry launched an investigation after the yacht reported being fired on by a Russian navy vessel about 20 nautical miles (23 miles, 37 kilometers) south of the Isle of Wight, outside U.K. territorial waters.
There were no reports of injuries or damage to the sailing yacht, which continued its journey from the U.K. toward France.
The BBC reported that the yacht, which has no motor, had drifted toward the Russian vessel in foggy conditions.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said the crew of the frigate Admiral Grigorovich tried to contact the yacht when it was seen sailing on a “dangerous course in close proximity with the warship.” It said the ship's crew launched flares and issued sound signals when the yacht did not respond.
“After the distance had closed to 150 meters (500 feet), the frigate’s commander decided to fire warning shots across the vessel’s bow using small arms,” the ministry said. It said the yacht then changed course and sailed away.
The ministry said the ship's crew “acted in strict accordance” with international navigation rules to avoid a collision.
Britain's account of the incident was similar.
“Following attempts to contact a British vessel in the channel, the Grigorovich fired warning shots. These were not aimed at the vessel and were an attempt to prevent a possible collision," Britain's Defense Ministry said in a statement.
Russian warships passing through the English Channel are routinely shadowed by the Royal Navy, and patrol vessel HMS Mersey was monitoring the Russian ship at the time of the reported incident and provided support to the yacht's crew.
The British military said last month that it had monitored the Admiral Grigorovich throughout April as the Russian ship escorted six Russia-linked civilian vessels near the U.K.
The altercation occurred two days after British commandos boarded and detained a sanctioned tanker in the Channel that is suspected of being part of the Russian “shadow fleet.” British defense officials said they don't believe the two events are linked.
The tanker's captain, an Indian national charged with shipping Russian oil in violation of international sanctions over Moscow’s war on Ukraine, was ordered held in jail after appearing Tuesday in court.
The British military has had several close encounters with Russian vessels in the region and warned Moscow in November that it was ready to deal with any incursion into its territory after the spy ship Yantar was detected on the edge of U.K. waters north of Scotland.
In April, Britain and Norway said they had tracked a Russian attack sub and two spy submarines operating north of the U.K. for several weeks.
A Royal Navy frigate, aircraft and hundreds of personnel spent weeks following the Russian vessels and prevented them from carrying out “nefarious” activities against underwater infrastructure, then-Defense Secretary John Healey said.
He accused Moscow of using the distraction of the Iran war to ramp up malign activity against Europe.
Five years ago, Russia said one of its warships fired warning shots and a warplane dropped bombs in the Black Sea to force the British destroyer HMS Defender out of an area near Crimea that Moscow claimed as its territorial waters.
The U.K. denied that account and insisted its ship wasn’t fired upon. It was the first time since the Cold War that Moscow acknowledged using live ammunition to deter a NATO warship, reflecting the growing risk of military incidents amid soaring tensions between Russia and the West. The incident occurred about six months before Russia invaded Ukraine.
An earlier version of this story said the incident occurred about 20 miles south of the Isle of Wight. It is 20 nautical miles, or 23 miles.
FILE - A Russian warship is docked in Port Sudan, Sudan, on Feb. 28, 2021. (AP Photo, File)
