11.08.2025 Denmark's statement for the Open Debate on Maritime Security in the UNSC

Checked Against Delivery

Thank you, Mr President,

President Mulino, we thank you for your presence today, for your call to action and for Panama’s commitment to keeping maritime security where it belongs: high on the agenda.

Let me also thank our briefers for their varied and insightful remarks. Each of your organisations plays a vital role in maintaining peace and security at sea.

Mr. President, allow me to make four key points.

First, maritime security begins with legal clarity. Respect for international law must remain our compass also at sea. The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea is the legal framework within which all activities in the ocean and seas must be carried out. It must be respected, defended and implemented. It is only by upholding international law, and our collective commitment to multilateralism, that we can address the maritime security challenges we face.

The Security Council also has a role to play. From the prevention of sanctions evasion, to the illicit transportation of critical resources, this body continues to contribute to a peaceful maritime environment. However, resolutions will simply remain words on paper if they are not translated into action. All UN Member States must implement and uphold them.

Unfortunately, unilateral actions continue to challenge the international legal order, with ongoing threats to freedom of navigation. This is most notable in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Guinea where Denmark has been engaging in national as well as coordinated multinational efforts to respond to piracy and other attacks on civilian commercial vessels. We do so with a clear goal: ensuring freedom of navigation for all.

Second, Mr President,

Maritime security can only be addressed through a comprehensive and cooperative approach. Addressing piracy or illicit trafficking alone is not enough. Where states lack the capacity to monitor or govern their maritime space, malicious actors unfortunately often move in. That is why Denmark supports approaches that link security to long-term capacity-building and development. National ownership, regional coordination, and international support must go hand in hand.

As today’s briefers highlighted, drug traffickers abuse the freedom of navigation to wreak havoc in source, transit and destination countries. A transnational response is needed to the rise in maritime drug trafficking and organised criminal networks operating on the high seas.

Third, Mr President,

We must respond to the growing complexity of maritime threats. There are new vectors of instability: attacks on critical undersea infrastructure, false flag registries, environmental degradation, and the emergence of “shadow fleets” operating with impunity.

Denmark is particularly concerned by the shadow fleet operating in the Baltic Sea. The increasing reliance on old, poorly maintained, and insufficiently insured vessels pose a great risk to seafarers, to maritime safety and security, the integrity of seaborne trade, and the environment. These vessels are often sailing with their transponders off to evade sanctions, including UN sanctions.

Shadow fleets operate in the North Sea, the Baltic Sea, the Mediterranean, the Straits of Malacca, Singapore, and elsewhere. The rules of the sea are being deliberately tested and undermined. An international solution is needed. Denmark supports greater transparency, including improved vessel tracking, registry integrity, and industry cooperation to close regulatory loopholes.

Mr President,

Protecting critical undersea infrastructure is vital for the functioning of our interconnected societies. Attacks on such infrastructure are deplorable and must be prevented. Coastal states’ capacities to monitor and respond to maritime threats above and below the surface need to be enhanced. As the destruction of submarine cables and pipelines is often caused by flagless vessels, restricting their freedom of navigation would enhance maritime security.

I take note of the comments by the representatives of the Russian Federation on the Nord Stream sabotage. In this regard, I want to underline that Denmark takes the sabotage against the Nord Stream pipeline seriously and have together with Germany and Sweden kept the Security Council thoroughly informed throughout the investigation process. We have done so through numerous notes throughout 2022, 2023 and 2024.

Denmark has had close cooperation with relevant foreign authorities, especially concerning the technical aspects of the investigation. The Russian authorities have been informed continuously about the progress of our investigations.

Fourth and finally, Mr President,

We need a stronger, more coordinated global response to critical maritime security challenges.

Today’s debate continues recent efforts to include the Security Council in considerations of new UN mechanisms to enhance peace and security in the maritime domain. We welcome these efforts and we support a strengthened UN role in this regard.

A strong collective response to maritime threats is in all of our interests.

It is a critical ingredient to building peace and security, to promoting economic prosperity, rule of law, and sustainable development for all.

I thank you.