A/RES/56/13 2. Calls upon all States that have not done so, in order to achieve the goal of universal participation, to become parties to the Convention,1 which sets out the legal framework within which all activities in the oceans and seas must be carried out, taking into account the relationship between the Convention and the Agreement; 3. Emphasizes the importance of the entry into force and effective implementation of the provisions of the Agreement, including those provisions relating to bilateral, regional and subregional cooperation in enforcement, and urges continued efforts in this regard; 4. Urges all States and other entities referred to in the Agreement to pursue cooperation in relation to straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks, either directly or through appropriate subregional or regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements, to ensure the effective conservation, management and long-term sustainability of such stocks, to agree upon measures necessary to coordinate and, where there are no subregional or regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements in respect of particular straddling or highly migratory fish stocks, to cooperate to establish such organizations or enter into other appropriate arrangements; 5. Welcomes the initiation of negotiations to establish regional and subregional fisheries management organizations or arrangements in several fisheries, and urges participants in those negotiations to apply provisions of the Convention and the Agreement to their work; 6. Anticipates the entry into force of the Agreement, and requests the Secretary-General, once the Agreement enters into force, to consult with States that have either ratified or acceded to the Agreement, for the purposes and objectives of, inter alia, considering the regional, subregional and global implementation of the Agreement; making any appropriate recommendation to the General Assembly on the scope and content of the annual report of the Secretary-General relating to the Agreement; and preparing for the review conference to be convened by the Secretary-General pursuant to article 36 of the Agreement; 7. Calls upon States to provide assistance to developing States as outlined in the Agreement, notes the importance of participation by representatives of developing States in forums in which fisheries issues are discussed, and once the Agreement enters into force, agrees to review the implementation of the provisions calling for assistance to developing States and to facilitate the establishment of a programme of assistance within the Agreement; 8. Requests the Secretary-General to include in his next report on the status and implementation of the Agreement a background study on the provisions of Part VII of the Agreement concerning requirements of developing States, taking into account existing arrangements and assistance to developing States that may be relevant under the Agreement, as well as suggesting possible forms of assistance; 9. Invites States and international financial institutions and organizations of the United Nations system to provide assistance according to Part VII of the Agreement, including, if appropriate, the development of special financial mechanisms or instruments to assist developing States, in particular the least developed among them and small island developing States, to enable them to develop their national capacity to exploit fishery resources, including developing their domestically flagged fishing fleet, value-added processing and expansion of 4