NEW YORK, (Pakistan Point News - 11th Aug, 2021) The underlined its commitment to regional and international efforts to address threats to maritime navigation, the marine environment, and global trade.
The UAE submitted a written statement to the United Nations Security Council for its high-level open debate on maritime security, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In light of recent threats to maritime security in the Arabian Peninsula, the UAE detailed the pivotal role that maritime transport plays in the global economy and underscored that maritime security and environmental sustainability are interconnected.
The UAE emphasised the global nature of the recent maritime attacks in the region, stating that "roughly one-third of the world’s energy resources are transported by ships through the Strait of Hormuz". Accordingly, all UN Member States have a stake in countering threats to sea shipping routes as they directly affect the global economy and global security.
Additionally, the UAE stated that maritime security and environmental sustainability are "two sides of the same coin". The statement noted that climate change and degradation of the ocean environment are expected to drive maritime crime and instability by contributing to insecurity, resource competition, and disrupting livelihoods that depend on the ocean. In this regard, the UAE welcomed the efforts taken by the UN off the coast of to mitigate the dangers posed by the SAFER tanker, which poses threats to both maritime safety and the surrounding marine environment.
The UAE recommended that the Security Council engage with the International Maritime Organisation on how to enhance coordination, cooperation, and collaboration among States to better protect, prevent and deter attacks in shipping lanes of strategic importance and significance to keep such straits safe, clean, and open to international navigation.
Furthermore, the UAE urged UN Member States to uphold freedom of navigation as a key principle of international law and recommended that all actors build trust across open lines of communication to promote restraint and avoid miscalculations at sea. Lastly, the UAE called for increased reporting from the office of the UN Secretary-General on climate-related maritime security risks to better support the Security Council in anticipating and acting on such risks.