Seychelles president delivers underwater speech, makes global plea to protect oceans

President Danny Faure's call for action, the first-ever live speech from an underwater submersible, comes from one of the many island nations threatened by global warming.

An image taken from video issued by Nekton shows Seychelles President Danny Faure, left, speaking from inside a submersible from the vessel Ocean Zephyr. (Photo | AP)

DESROCHES ISLAND (Seychelles): In a striking speech delivered from deep below the ocean's surface, the Seychelles president is making a global plea for stronger protection of the "beating blue heart of our planet."

President Danny Faure's call for action, the first-ever live speech from an underwater submersible, comes from one of the many island nations threatened by global warming.

Seychelles President Danny Faure sits inside a submersible on the deck of vessel Ocean Zephyr, off the coast of Desroches, in the outer islands of Seychelles. (Photo | AP)

The president is speaking during a visit to an ambitious British-led science expedition exploring the Indian Ocean depths.

Oceans cover over two-thirds of the world's surface but remain, for the most part, uncharted. Faure's speech says that "this issue is bigger than all of us, and we cannot wait for the next generation to solve it. We are running out of excuses to not take action, and running out of time."