The UNESCO Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage is aimed at providing States Parties with an international legal mechanism to protect their submerged heritage. However, ratification must be accompanied by the effective national implementation of the Convention and mobilization of the adequate means to support it. The main objective of the international meeting is to continue to reinforce the implementation of the 2001 Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage, especially with regard to practical questions such as site preservation and monitoring, as well as existing measures to prevent illicit trafficking of underwater cultural heritage.