Plenary

STATEMENT BY AMBASSADOR VANU GOPALA MENON, PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF SINGAPORE TO THE UNITED NATIONS ON AGENDA ITEM 74(A): OCEANS AND THE LAW OF THE SEA, 7 DECEMBER 2010

1. I am honoured to address the Assembly on agenda item 74(a), pertaining to "Oceans and the Law of the Sea".

Mr. President

2. The 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea ("the Convention") remains one of the landmark achievements of the international community. Enshrined within the Convention are finely balanced compromises and carefully crafted provisions designed to ensure the harmonious usage of our oceans and seas. It has served us well for close to three decades, and it bears witness to what the global community can achieve if we work together in the spirit of co-operation and consensus for our collective good.

3. Singapore is an island nation. It is fully surrounded by the seas and sits astride one of the busiest straits in the world, which has nourished us from our founding as a trading post, and continues to sustain us today even in this era of modern commerce. Ships bearing goods from all over the world call at our port, as they have for close to two hundred years, en route to their final destinations. It is therefore of utmost importance to our survival and continued growth and prosperity that the rights of passage guaranteed in the Convention continue to be respected by all countries. As such, we remain, like many countries, ever vigilant in ensuring that the Convention remains the fundamental framework within which all activity related to our oceans and seas is regulated.

Mr. President

4. The Convention has stood the test of time, but like any established code, it faces challenges in a time beset by changes in the global order and by the accelerating pace of economic development. In this regard, we see two potential challenges to the Convention, which we think deserve more attention from the international community.

5. First, globalisation has shrunk the world, including its oceans. As mankind devises new ways of exploiting the resources of the oceans and seas, these activities are increasingly coming under scrutiny from various quarters, and in numerous fora. We welcome such attention as a positive development. Given the scarce resources available in the oceans, it is vital that we work together to manage them, lest we destroy or deplete them in a frenzy of rapaciousness. However, discussions on the management of resources, whether bilaterally, regionally or even multilaterally, have sometimes focused solely on the technical, scientific or environmental aspects of this issue. While well-meaning, such an approach has led at times to decisions being made or measures being taken that are sometimes difficult to reconcile with the Convention. This has had the unfortunate effect of threatening to undermine the complex web of interlocking rights and obligations that are so carefully balanced within the Convention. We therefore urge all countries to ensure that there is a holistic approach to the complex issues relating to the use of our oceans and seas, and to create mechanisms, as well as a culture, whereby all experts dealing with issues relating to our seas and oceans can have a full discussion of the issue, which in turn, will result in solutions that will also be congruent with the wording and spirit of the Convention.

6. The second challenge we see is a consequence of an emerging multi-polar world. As the totem pole of global power is realigned, temptation will grow for national assertions of territory, including parts of the high seas, as areas or zones of influence. We must never forget that international law governs the issuance and resolution of such assertions; the Convention has unequivocally guaranteed the freedom of the high seas and the rights of transit passage, for the common benefit of all nations. This is one of the cornerstones of the law of the sea, and the international community must be ready to challenge any attempt by any power to undermine it.

Mr. President

7. In our modern world, what lies beneath our oceans has become as important as what sails above it. Virtually all modern commerce and communications - the international phonecall you make, the e-mails you send, the merchandise you order from the internet retailer - depend on the network of submarine fibre optic cables which links us together. These unseen and unsung cables are the true skeleton and nerve of our world, linking our countries together in a fibre optic web.

8. However, this web is not invulnerable and damage to these submarine cables will cause disruption and economic loss. While advances in technology provide automatic re-routing of data traffic in such instances, global communications and the Internet remain highly dependent on submarine cables as key physical communication links between countries, and we should never take this critical communications infrastructure for granted. If there should come a day when an accident, or worse, a deliberate well-planned act of sabotage, knocks out a key node or portion of these cables, countries and even whole regions could suffer massive economic losses, social disruptions, and compromises to national security. Despite this, many countries are unaware of the critical importance of submarine cables and many States Parties to the Convention have not paid sufficient attention to the obligation under the Convention to ensure that they have criminal jurisdiction over the wilful or negligent damage to these cables in the High Seas.

9. Given the importance of this issue, Singapore has sought to introduce two paragraphs regarding submarine cables in this year's omnibus resolution on Oceans and the Law of the Sea. We thank the many countries that have given strong expressions of support in favour of the paragraphs and worked closely with us for the inclusion of these paragraphs in the resolution. The support we have received demonstrates that the international community is now beginning to turn its attention to this issue. We hope that the language in the resolution will catalyse many conversations in various fora, and that in time to come, experts, governments, industry and other relevant actors in this area will identify and address issues relevant to these cables and work towards ensuring their security for the common economic and social good of our world.

Mr. President

10. Singapore has always viewed the Convention as a lynchpin of international relations. Although piracy and other disruptions to shipping hog headlines, it is a fact that millions of vessels traverse our oceans and seas daily without incident. This is a strong testament to the success of the Convention.

11. Thank you, Mr. President.

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