António Guterres was speaking at the closing session of the Youth and Innovation Forum of the UN Ocean Conference 2022 (UNOC - United Nations Ocean Conference).

“I want to apologize, on behalf of my generation, to your generation, regarding the state of the ocean, the state of biodiversity and the state of climate change”, said the Secretary-General of the United Nations, speaking to an audience of young people.

The official admitted that his generation was politically responsible for the degradation of the conditions of the oceans, for having been slow, or even “unwilling to recognise that conditions were deteriorating at sea”.

“Even today, we are moving slowly towards reversing the trend and rehabilitating the oceans, saving biodiversity and stopping climate change,” he added.