۱. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall be the depositary of this Convention and amendments thereto.
۲. In addition to his functions as depositary, the Secretary-General shall:
(a) report to all States Parties, the Authority and competent international organizations on issues of a general nature that have arisen with respect to this Convention;
(b) notify the Authority of ratifications and formal confirmations of and accessions to this Convention and amendments thereto, as well as of denunciations of this Convention;
(c) notify States Parties of agreements in accordance with article ۳۱۱, paragraph ۴;
(d) circulate amendments adopted in accordance with this Convention to States Parties for ratification or accession;
(e) convene necessary meetings of States Parties in accordance with this Convention.
۳. (a) The Secretary-General shall also transmit to the observers referred to in article ۱۵۶:
(i) reports referred to in paragraph ۲(a);
(ii) notifications referred to in paragraph ۲(b) and (c); and
(iii) texts of amendments referred to in paragraph ۲(d), for their information.
(b) The Secretary-General shall also invite those observers to participate as observers at meetings of States Parties referred to in paragraph ۲(e).