On 22 January 2024 Palau became the first state or regional economic integration organization to ratify the Agreement 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 (BBNJ Agreement). This follows the reported completion of the domestic process approving its ratification on 12 December 2023 (House Joint Resolution No. 11-59-12S).
In related news, on 16 January 2024 the Senate and Senate Foreign Relations Committee of Chile approved the BBNJ Agreement, completing the domestic process. Ratification of the BBNJ Agreement by Chile will occur when the instrument of ratification is deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations (BBNJ Agreement, Article 66).
The BBNJ Agreement is not yet in force. In accordance with Article 68(1) of the BBNJ Agreement, the BBNJ Agreement “will enter into force 120 days after the date of deposit of the sixtieth instrument of ratification, approval, acceptance or accession”.
De Maribus 