Source: United Nations (Video News)
Noon Briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.
Highlights:
Trip Announcement/Secretary-General
World Oceans Day
Secretary-General/Fallen Staff
Occupied Palestinian Territory
Ukraine
Syria/Security Council
International Days
TRIP ANNOUNCEMENT/SECRETARY-GENERAL
On Sunday, June 8, the Secretary-General will arrive in Nice, in France, to take part in the third UN Ocean Conference, co-hosted by France and Costa Rica.
On Monday, the Secretary-General will deliver remarks during the conference’s opening session. He will recall the progress achieved since the last Ocean Conference in Lisbon and call for investments to fully realize the sustainable development goal number 14, which is, as you know, life below water.
The Secretary-General will also use this opportunity to urge all countries to ratify the Agreement on Marine Biological Diversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ), and also to call on member states to agree this year on an ambitious and legally binding treaty on plastic pollution.
The BBNJ will enter into force 120 days after its 60th ratification, and to facilitate this process, our colleagues at the department of Legal Affairs are organizing a Treaty event during the Ocean conference. At that event, all Member States who have not yet done so will be able to formally deposit their ratification.
While in Nice, the Secretary-General will have bilateral meetings with both co-hosts of the conference, President Emmanuel Macron, of France, as well as President Rodrigo Chaves Robles, of Costa Rica. He will also have a number of bilateral meetings with other delegation leaders and members of the civil society who will be at the conference.
On Tuesday morning, the Secretary-General will conclude his programme in Nice with a press encounter, which will be shown live on UN WebTV.
WORLD OCEANS DAY
A day ahead of the UN Ocean Conference, the UN will mark World Oceans Day. In his message, the Secretary-General calls for the protection of marine biodiversity, the rejection of practices that inflict irreversible damage, and he calls for the delivery on the promises of the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Agreement. &nbs
SECRETARY-GENERAL/FALLEN STAFF
This morning, the Secretary-General spoke at the annual memorial service for UN staff who have lost their lives in the line of duty over the past year, and he paid tribute to the 168 men and women who lost their lives in 2024.
He told journalists this morning that the past year has been especially devastating in Gaza, with 126 of our colleagues killed there — 125 of those were serving with UNRWA.
Mr. Guterres said that the sacrifice of all 168 of our fallen colleagues everywhere is a tragedy, adding that it is also a reminder of the responsibility carried by every United Nations staff member, every single day.
He said that as we mourn those lost, we must also recognize the living — the thousands of UN personnel who serve around the world today, carrying out the missions entrusted to them by the countries that make up these United Nations.
Full highlights: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date%5Bvalue%5D%5Bdate%5D=05%20June%202025