French president Macron says its time for an agreement on the Oceans
French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday slammed the withdrawal of climate funding by the US, saying it was time to reach an agreement for the entire planet.
Macron said this on the eve of the 3rd United Nations Ocean Conference and amid rising pressure for nations to turn decades of promises into real protection for the sea.
Speaking to scientists at one of the sideline forums of the UN conference, the Fremch presidet said: 'Unfortunately, if we are more or less clear-headed, we are at a time when international science, which still depends a lot on American funding, is withdrawing this funding, where we have a lot of people who are questioning multilateralism and these agencies".
He called on nations to commit to a moratorium on deep-sea exploitation. "I want us to reach an agreement for the entire planet. Because it's completely crazy. It's completely crazy to go and exploit, to go and drill in a place we don't know. It's frenzied madness."
Host to the third edition of the UN Oceans conference, Macron said around 30 heads of state and government have committed to a moratorium on deep-sea exploitation.
"There are already about 30 of us who have agreed. We're not going to give up. It's completely crazy to go and exploit, to go and drill in a place we don't know. It's frenzied madness," he stressed.
More than 50 world leaders are expected to attend the UN conference, with a major focus of the weeklong summit being a push to ratify the High Seas Treaty, which would enable conservation in international waters.
Thousands of delegates, including scientists and environmental advocates, began to arrive on Sunday for the conference to confront growing threats to the ocean and the need to transform pledges into protection.
The United Nations has called the threats a global emergency facing the world's oceans as they confront rising temperatures, plastic pollution choking marine life, and relentless overexploitation of fish and other resources.
Activists on board the Madleen vessel en route to Gaza to provide humanitarian goods say they have been intercepted by Israeli soldiers.
Posting on Telegram, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) campaign organisation announced "connection has been lost" on the Madleen and later uploaded a photo of people sitting with their hands up in life jackets.
Israel's foreign ministry's latest updates on the aid boat said the yacht was "safely making its way to the shores of Israel," and its occupants were "expected to return to their home countries."
Shortly after, the Israeli foreign ministry released a video on X showing its navy giving orders to the Gaza-bound aid ship to divert and posted another footage that showed passengers of what it called the "Selfie Yacht" safe and unharmed.
Concern first mounted overnight for the safety of the Freedom Flotilla's Madleen crew after alarms went off on the boat carrying Greta Thunberg and other activists en route to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid.
The Freedom Flotilla Coalition said the situation caused panic and led many of them to take cover and put on life jackets in preparation for an intervention.
In a post on social media, it wrote, 'Alarm has been sounded on the Madleen. Life jackets are on, preparing for interception.'
Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur on occupied territories, who claimed to be in contact with the flotilla's communication room in Catania, noted that around five vessels had been circling the aid boat, with two drones hovering over the vessel.
On Sunday, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said that Israel wouldn't allow anyone to break its naval blockade of the Palestinian territory, which he said was aimed at preventing Hamas from importing arms.
'To the antisemitic Greta and her fellow Hamas propagandists — I will say this clearly: You should turn back, because you will not make it to Gaza,' he said in a statement.
Climate activist Thunberg is one of 12 activists on board the Freedom Flotilla Coalition-run Madleen.
The boat left Sicily last Sunday on a mission to provide humanitarian goods and lift the naval blockade of Gaza while bringing attention to the escalating humanitarian situation two months into the Israel-Hamas conflict.
In May, the Freedom Flotilla's attempt to reach Gaza by sea failed when two drones struck one of the group's ships as it was cruising in international waters off Malta.
The said attack damaged the frontal part of the vessel, which the group blamed on Israel, a claim that Israel strongly refuted.
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