A/RES/75/239 Oceans and the law of the sea Noting with satisfaction that 16 November 2019 marked the twenty-fifth anniversary of the entry into force of the Convention, and recognizing the pre -eminent contribution provided by the Convention to the strengthening of peace, security, cooperation and friendly relations among all nations in conformity with the principles of justice and equal rights and to the promotion of the economic and social advancement of all peoples of the world, in accordance with the purposes and principles of the United Nations as set forth in the Charter of the United Nations , as well as to the sustainable development of the oceans and seas, Emphasizing the universal and unified character of the Convention, and reaffirming that the Convention sets out the legal framework within which all activities in the oceans and seas must be carried out and is of strategic importance as the basis for national, regional and global action and cooperation in the marine sector, and that its integrity needs to be maintained, as recognized also by the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in chapter 17 of Agenda 21, 5 Noting with satisfaction that, in the outcome document of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 20 to 22 June 2012, entitled “The future we want”, 6 as endorsed by the General Assembly in resolution 66/288 of 27 July 2012, States recognized that oceans, seas and coastal areas form an integrated and essential component of the Earth’s ecosystem and are critical to sustaining it, and that international law, as reflected in the Convention, provides the legal framework for the conservation and sustainable use of the oceans and their resources, and stressed the importance of the conservation and sustainable use of the oceans and seas and of their resources for sustainable development, including through their contributions to poverty eradication, sustained economic growth, food security and creation of sustainable livelihoods and decent work, while at the same time protecting biodiversity and the marine environment and addressing the impacts of climate change, Recalling that, in “The future we want”, States underscored that broad public participation and access to information and judicial and administrative proceed ings were essential to the promotion of sustainable development and that sustainable development required the meaningful involvement and active participation of regional, national and subnational legislatures and judiciaries, and all major groups, and, in this regard, that they agreed to work more closely with major groups and other stakeholders and encouraged their active participation, as appropriate, in processes that contribute to decision-making, planning and implementation of policies and programmes for sustainable development at all levels, Recalling also the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, 7 and in this regard reaffirming the commitment to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development, as reflected in Goal 14 of the 2030 Agenda, which is important to the achievement of the Sustainable Developme nt Goals contained in the 2030 Agenda, Recalling further its resolution 71/312 of 6 July 2017 in which it endorsed the declaration entitled “Our ocean, our future: call for action” adopted by the high -level United Nations Conference to Support the Implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development, held from 5 to 9 June 2017, coinciding with World Oceans Day on 8 June, and in this regard affirming the important role of the __________________ 5 6 7 2/56 Report of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, Rio de Janeiro, 3−14 June 1992, vol. I, Resolutions Adopted by the Conference (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.93.I.8 and corrigendum), resolution 1, annex II. Resolution 66/288, annex. Resolution 70/1. 21-00005