UN General Assembly adopts resolution on Aral Sea region proposed by Uzbek president

The UN General Assembly within its 75th plenary session on May 18 unanimously adopted a resolution declaring the Aral Sea region a zone of ecological innovations and technologies, through which it encouraged research and scientific advisory activities to recover and improve the environment, preserve natural resources and enhance the quality of life in the region.

The initiative was put forward by Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

Uzbekistan’s representative in the UN described the drying of the Aral Sea as “one of the most serious environmental problems of our time”. The deteriorating environmental situation in the region will have far reaching socioeconomic, humanitarian and health implications, he warned, noting that the volume of the Aral Sea — the fourth largest lake in the world until the 1960s — has decreased at an alarming rate. The crisis has prompted Uzbekistan and the United Nations to establish a unified platform for mitigating its consequences.

Delivering an explanation of position, the representative of Kyrgyzstan said that while he had joined consensus, concerns remain over the effectiveness of funds being directed towards addressing the situation in the Aral Sea.

The Assembly called on member states, the United Nations and international financial institutions to develop and implement environmentally sound technologies, as well as energy- and water-saving technologies, in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.