MC State News: Visit by EU Council’s Working Party on European Free Trade Association
Visit by EU Council’s Working Party on European Free Trade Association hailed as success
The Council of the European Union’s Working Party on the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), which is responsible for following up the negotiations aimed at concluding an association agreement between Monaco and the EU, recently spent three days on a study visit in the Principality.
Gilles Tonelli, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, expressed the Prince’s Government’s satisfaction with the visit, declaring that its objectives had been achieved: “In the event that the negotiations are successful, it is the Council of the European Union which will ultimately need to approve the final version of the draft agreement. It is therefore essential that diplomats from the EU’s member states who have the responsibility of overseeing our negotiations are able to see for themselves, and in a very tangible way, the realities of our country. The eclectic nature of the programme and the numerous discussions with a wide range of interlocutors, representing both the public and private sectors, provided an opportunity to demonstrate the different facets of Monaco and its economy. This type of study visit is vital to ensure that the arguments which support our requests can be verified and thus accepted.”
Monaco Attends the Intergovernmental Conference on Conservation and the Use of Marine Biodiversity
The Principality of Monaco took part in the opening of the first session of the Intergovernmental Conference to draft a new treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction. This session is currently taking place in New York and will continue until 17 September. This represents an historic milestone for this process, which was initiated many years ago.
In its speech, the Principality asserted that this work should ultimately lead to an ambitious Agreement, which will complement the existing regime, established by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Among the many topics addressed, the Principality made its voice heard in particular with its speech on the creation of marine protected areas in the high seas through global standards and processes. The Monegasque delegation is actively engaged in the work for this process, with the two-fold aim of ensuring the effective protection of marine resources and the marine environment and their sustainable use by future generations.
Monaco Attends the 39th Session of the Human Rights Council
H.E. Ambassador Carole Lanteri, Permanent Representative of the Principality to the United Nations Office in Geneva, attended the opening of the 39th session of the Human Rights Council, which is being held at the Palais des Nations from Monday 10 September until 28 September.
Source: gouv.mc
