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<p>The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and the Department for Environment, Food
and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) have been actively involved in the preparations for formal
negotiations to develop a new agreement under the UN Convention on the Law of the
Sea on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas
beyond national jurisdiction. We were actively involved in developing and shaping
the EU and Member States' positions during the initial stages of discussions at the
UN Ad Hoc Working Group on this issue and during the Preparatory Committee, which
reported in July 2017. This Preparatory Committee led to the establishment of the
intergovernmental conference which will start its work on the substance in September
2018. The FCO leads, with close cooperation from DEFRA, on these negotiations. We
have also consulted with and will continue to consult with other government departments
during these negotiations. We will also continue to discuss these issues with external
stakeholders including the scientific community and civil society.</p><p>The UK delegation
to the intergovernmental conference in September will include three officials, supported
by policy and legal expertise from DEFRA. We will continue to review the composition
and size of the delegation as the negotiations develop in order to ensure that we
have the right people in place to promote the UK's interests and the interests of
global conservation.</p>
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