Counsellor and Legal Adviser in the Indian Mission to the UN Koteswara Rao said here that India welcomes the process to develop an international legally binding instrument under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction.
"The new instrument should encompass all marine resources in areas beyond national jurisdiction, including the marine genetic resources currently known or which may be discovered at any time in the future," he said during a General Assembly session on Monday.
He said given the vastness of high seas and huge potential of the marine resources, a viable international legal regime for their conservation and sustainable use is a desirable option.
On the marine protected areas (MPAs), Rao said while there is an obligation under UNCLOS for nations to cooperate with each other in the conservation and management of living resources in the areas of the high seas,
"We believe that rights of other States, including freedoms of the high seas, are equally important and the challenge would be to arrive at an effective balance so that these rights rights are not restricted," he said.