It has been expressed by communities, international organizations and the United Nations (UN) for many years that an agreement should be prepared in order to protect marine assets under the oceans. It is known that efforts towards this have started with draft and research studies in the last 20 years. By means of the Ocean Agreement, arrangements will be made regarding the situation of the climate and sea creatures at risk, and the protection of open sea areas will be ensured. The agreement will be ratified by nearly 200 countries and the initiative will not be left to the monopoly of the big states. The agreement, which will be adopted by countries in their domestic laws after the legal arrangements to be made in the near future, aims to eliminate the water crisis and the climate crisis.
The Ocean Treaty is the only treaty covering offshore areas. The idea that countries are responsible to maritime assets, even if they are not landlocked, forms the basis of this agreement. It will be possible for the states that take initiatives such as maritimization and working in the maritime areas to organize search, rescue and information gathering activities in the open seas thanks to the agreement. It should be noted that; Reports prepared by international independent organizations such as Greenpeace played a leading role in raising awareness on this issue. In the prepared reports, it is stated that the oceans have not been fully explored yet, and that the countries of the world have more information about the Moon and Mars. The creatures living in the oceans are damaged due to increasing biological and chemical wastes. At this point, the Ocean Agreement comes to the fore as an important step taken by states to prevent pollution.
Before the Ocean Treaty, the competences of the states with a coastline were determined by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. However, this contract; It did not include any protection or limitation plans in the high seas for hunting, protection of coasts and exploitation of valuable underground riches. It enabled states parties to establish search and protection in their territorial waters within 200 miles. It can be seen that the effect of the nation-state has been decisive in protecting the seas in the process that has continued until today.
The Ocean Agreement, on the other hand, aims to prevent powerful states from monopolizing these protected areas with the opportunities it contains, and also allows countries that do not have a coast to work in these areas. Thus, it is planned to prevent the increasing ecological damages of seabed mining. Despite all this, it is a matter of curiosity whether developed states such as the United States (USA) and China, which aim to establish superiority in the seas, will seriously implement their protection plans.
It is thought that the activities carried out in terms of providing geopolitical superiority with elements such as seabed mining, oil refineries and the detection of hydrophobic areas harm the life under the seas. While seabed mining is getting stronger with developing research methods and findings; The damage to nature is also increasing. This increase can also be associated with the oceans and open sea areas where developed countries are more damaged. Because developed countries allocate the opportunities they have for this type of research and take steps to ensure the development of the sector. It is believed that almost half of the living species living under the sea have begun to disappear due to these researches and commercial activities. On the other hand, it may be possible for developed states to develop or expand mining according to commercial interests.
On the other hand, it is thought that this long-awaited agreement may lead to legal gaps regarding exploration and extraction in the seas. In this regard, not only developed countries; Developing states may struggle to get a share of the pie. Despite the increasing destruction of nature caused by climate change, it can be predicted that prioritizing commercial interests will draw the reaction of environmental groups. In such an environment, it should not be expected that offshore areas will be regulated entirely by organizations based on commercial interests.
As a result, the Ocean Agreement, which envisages the protection of the oceans, which are the treasures of the world, which will have to grapple with the climate crisis in the future, is very important. Because the damage to the sub-ocean ecosystem of living untimely and faulty fishing activities is quite high. It would be appropriate to try to defend these areas, which we have not yet discovered, with a common purpose. It is critical that this agreement, which can also limit offshore mining, which is becoming an increasing threat, becomes widespread in a format. Because no matter what nation or state, humanity will continue to live in need of seas, water and oxygen.
