Thank you Charles, dear colleagues,

I am honoured to be here today to discuss the challenges and opportunities ahead of us when it comes to preventing and reducing marine pollution. And let me start by thanking the co-chairs Germany and Mauritania for their dedication and leadership on this crucial issue.

This conference, and the great interest in our discussion here today, is a clear sign of how much we value our waters. The Ocean and the seas, our rivers and our lakes, are something that bind us all together.

They have shaped our history, formed our culture, and supported our wellbeing and our prosperity. Just think of all the economic sectors that depend on a clean sea, such as fisheries, aquaculture and tourism.

This is also why polluted waters are so damaging. Not just to the environment, but also to our health and our prosperity. Businesses are increasingly affected by this, because they need clean water too.

We also know that these challenges know no borders, which is why it is so important that we work together to address them.

The past week has marked a great step forward in the European Unions commitment to preserving the Ocean. Under the leadership of my colleagues Raffale Fitto and Costas Kadis, we have adopted the European Ocean Pact in order to bring together all our ocean policies with a clear sense of direction.

I am also proud that the EU has signed, this very morning, the declaration launching the High-Ambition Coalition for a Quiet Ocean.

But we also know that many of the challenges facing our waters come from land-based activities. This is why we say that our water ecosystems must be healthy – from source to sea. Because our waters are a circular ecosystem.

Ultimately, our rivers flow into the oceans. And with them, our rivers carry the results of our activities on land. This is why SDG14, on life below water, is so closely linked to SDG6 on clean water and sanitation.

It is this link that I would like to discuss today. Let me just make a few initial points.

My first message is that in order to protect the seas, we need to fight pollution at source. Europe is a good example of this. We have long-standing EU legislation to protect our waters against chemical, plastic, and nutrient pollution, preventing pollution at source. But despite this solid policy framework, only 27% of Europes surface water bodies achieved good chemical status so far. So we need to step up our efforts.

This is one reason why we just published our EU Water Resilience Strategy. This is our most ambitious initiative to date when it comes to addressing water stress, repairing the broken water cycle, and improving water quality.

With the strategy, we want to take bold steps to restore and protect the full water cycle, from source to sea.

Nature-based solutions will play an essential role, as investing in healthy ecosystems is among the most cost-effective measures.

There is however a clear need for significant, additional public and private investments.

This is why I am happy and grateful that the European Investment Bank will provide EUR 15 billion in water funding over the next three years.

My second message is that to address pollution, we must also address plastics.

Plastic pollution is particularly harmful in our seas and ocean. And every, year up to 1.8 million tonnes of microplastics – or 600 Olympic-size swimming pools – are estimated to be released into the environment in the EU, including at sea.

Still, it is not all bad news. We see some progress. Compared to 2015, we see 29% less marine litter on European beaches. And we are finalising new rules to prevent plastic pellet losses at sea and on land.

But more must be done. At home, we are therefore boosting circularity and promoting new bio-based materials to replace plastics. This is not only good news for our environment, but it also promotes innovation and new technologies as well.

We are also working hand-in-hand with our neighbours through the Regional Sea Conventions. And we are ready to do more, including through an ambitious Global Plastics Treaty. This is why we count on all countries to work towards a successful and effective outcome of the negotiations in Geneva this summer.

Ladies and gentlemen,

I began by stating that water and its challenges know no borders. Therefore, my third and final message is the need to work together. The EU will continue to make progress and show leadership, but we know that we cannot make sufficient progress alone. We need our partners.

This is why our new water strategy sets a clear path for strengthening our global outreach and our water diplomacy, building on the outcomes of the UN 2023 Water Conference and preparing for the one in 2026.

A key part of this is building better governance. The UN Water Conference is already a key forum for multilateral action. But I believe that we must go further and mainstream water in key international processes and coalitions.

In our own neighbourhood, we will also work closely with accession countries and strengthen investments through the Western Balkans Investment instruments and the Ukraine Facility.

We also aim to strengthen cooperation with other partners, big and small, through our Global Gateway where water access, resilience and sustainability are key elements.

Finally, the Commission will convene a Water Resilience Forum every two years to bring together stakeholders from all sectors – government, business and civil society – to continue our dialogue, assess progress, and share best practices.

We are ready to take action together with the international community. No one can do everything, but we can all do our part to improve the state of our waters. Thank you.