On the 23rd, the United Nations official website announced that China deposited its instrument of ratification with UN Secretary General Guterres on the 15th of this month for the Agreement on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biodiversity in Areas beyond National Jurisdiction under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (hereinafter referred to as the "Agreement"). The Agreement is an important international treaty under the framework of the United Nations. Based on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, it aims to conserve and sustainably utilize marine biodiversity, focusing on four major areas: deep-sea genetic resources, marine protected areas, environmental impact assessment, and capacity building. It further establishes legal norms for deep-sea activities of various countries and profoundly affects the international maritime order. The negotiation process of the Agreement began in 2004 and was adopted by consensus on June 19, 2023, and opened for signature on September 20 of the same year. As of now, 144 countries and the European Union have signed the Agreement, and 80 countries and the European Union have deposited their instruments of ratification, approval, acceptance or accession. The agreement will come into effect on January 17, 2026. China fully participated in the negotiations of the Agreement and signed it on the first day of its opening for signature, becoming one of the first signatories of the Agreement. On October 28, 2025, the 18th meeting of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress passed a decision to approve the Agreement. China will become a contracting party from the date of entry into force of the Agreement. The Agreement was negotiated and reached over 19 years by more than 190 countries. Guterres praised the introduction of the Agreement as "demonstrating the power of multilateralism" and welcomed its imminent entry into force, calling it a "historic achievement" in ocean conservation and multilateralism. (New Society)