from plants and animals found in the high seas should be shared between nations. several important drugs, including treatments for covid, hiv and cancer, were developed from marine life. the potential for profit is huge. but no one knows how much ocean resources are truly worth, nor how they could be split. it s a little bit hard to even wrap our heads around how big and how distant these areas are. if you imagine, like, a big high definition wide screen tv and if only, like, three or four of the pixels on that giant screen are working, that s kind of our knowledge of the deep ocean. we don t know so much of what s going on. countries will need to meet again to formally adopt the treaty. but for many, now there will be much relief. esme stallard, bbc news. let s speak to the bbc world service environment correspondent navin singh khadka.
if you imagine like a big high definition widescreen tv, and only three or four of the pixels on that giant screen are working, that s kind of our knowledge of the deep oceans, we don t know so much what is going on. countries will need to meet again to formally adopt the treaty but for many, now there will be much relief. esme stallard, bbc news. intense fighting is continuing in the ukrainian city of bakhmut. ukrainian forces are trying to repel russian attempts to take control of the city, with troops fighting in the streets. thousands of civilians are believed to be in bakhmut without access to gas, electricity or water. the former health secretary matt hancock told aides he wanted to frighten the pants off everyone to ensure compliance with covid 19 restrictions, in the latest leaked messages to be published in the sunday telegraph.
see service levels going that way as well. katy austin, bbc news. after 15 years of talks, members of the un have reached a landmark agreement to safeguard the world s oceans. the treaty will create protected areas covering 30% of the high seas, or international waters, by the end of the decade. the deal was struck after a final 38 hour push at un headquarters in new york last night. our climate reporter, esme stallard, reports. the ship has reached the shore. (cheering and applause). it took all night but countries from around the world finally agreed on how to protect the high seas. high seas are international waters that are controlled by any nation, they make up controlled by any nation, they make up two thirds of the world s oceans and play host to most of the marine life of the planet, 2 million
a big high definition widescreen tv, and if only, like, three or four of the pixels on that giant screen are working, that s kind of our knowledge of the deep ocean. like, we don t know so much of what s going on. an agreement might have been reached, but that is just the first step. before it enters into force, 60 countries need to sign the treaty and incorporate it into their national legislation. it is hoped this will be finished within a few years. esme stallard, bbc news. the northern ireland secretary, chris heaton harris, told the bbc s laura kuenssberg about one measure being considered to halt refugee arrivals in small boats crossing the english channel. it is part of a whole range of things, a whole gambit of things, to try and both keep people in home country or as close to home country as we possibly can, to try to make sure they are looked after in the first free
in a couple of years. esme stallard, bbc news. minna epps, the head of the oceans team at the international union for conservation of nature, joined me earlier to discuss the significance of the treaty. i think a historic milestone for ocean protection the safety of the countries of the world came together and found common ground and agreed on a text for a treaty for high seas to protect them in terms of conservation and sustainable use on marine biological diversity. how do you get 193 states to find common ground? that is a challenging process. as you know this has taken a very, very long time. there have been five rounds of negotiations so this was actually the resumed