1. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs held the 8th International Conference on the Law of the Sea in Seoul on November 20-21 under the theme of “Law of the Sea for the Next Generation: BBNJ Agreement*, from Definition to Regulation.”

* 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

2. Co-organized by the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) and the Korean Society of International Law (KSIL), this year’s conference marked the culmination of the three-year “Law of the Sea for the Next Generation” series. The series kicked off in 2021 to take a closer look at the challenges presented and map out the course of the law of the sea regime going forward.

3. In the opening ceremony, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Oh Youngju delivered welcoming remarks, while the newly-elected ITLOS President Tomas Heidar and KSIL President Kang Pyoung-Keun gave congratulatory remarks. In his keynote speech, Professor Paik Jin-Hyun, the former President of ITLOS, highlighted the significance of the BBNJ Agreement.

4. The conference consisted of five sessions, each focusing on one of the major issues covered by the BBNJ Agreement—namely, marine genetic resources; measures such as area-based management tools including marine protected areas; environmental impact assessments; capacity-building and transfer of marine technology; and cross-cutting issues such as dispute settlement. The conference provided a venue for academics and experts to have an in-depth discussion on the BBNJ Agreement and share valuable insights on the future trajectory of the law of the sea regime.

5. The conference was streamed live, and the video recordings are going to be uploaded on Youtube (www.youtube.com/lawofthesea1982) shortly.