The Commission has today repealed
the measures adopted against the Faroe Islands in August 2013 following
their unsustainable fishery on Atlanto-Scandian herring. The measures
imposed at the time will now be lifted as of 20th August 2014.
The decision comes after it was
agreed that the Faroe Islands would cease their unsustainable fishery
and would adopt a catch limit for herring in 2014 at 40,000t. This level
is considerably lower than the one the Faroes had adopted in 2013 and
which, according to the current scientific assessments, does not put in
jeopardy the conservation efforts of the coastal States sharing the
stock.
However, the lifting of the
measures does not represent a tacit agreement by the EU that 40,000t is
the legitimate share of the stock for the Faroe Islands. It is merely
indicative of the fact that the sustainability of the stock is no longer
in jeopardy. The decision is also without prejudice to the
consultations that will take place in the autumn among the five coastal
States (Norway, the Russian Federation, Iceland, Faroe Islands and the
EU) on the future sharing of the stock.
The lifting of the measures
represents a clean slate in the EU's relations with the Faroe Islands, a
country viewed as a potential strategic partner on pelagic fisheries in
the north-east Atlantic. European Commissioner for Maritime Affairs and
Fisheries Maria Damanaki intends to meet Mr Vestergaard, Minister of
Fisheries of the Faroe Islands, to set the basis for a new era of
cooperation.
Background...
Following the unilateral
increases in mackerel catch by the Faroe Islands in 2010, the normal
bilateral exchanges of fishing rights had been interrupted, which made
fishermen from both parties unable to fish in their traditional fishing
grounds in each other's fishing zone.
Following a unilateral increase
of catch of herring by Faroe Islands in 2013 which put in danger the
sustainability of the stock, the Commission adopted a prohibition to
import in the EU herring and mackerel caught under the control of the
Faroe Islands. Entry into EU ports of vessels engaged in fishing or
transporting such fish was also prohibited. In response to these
measures, the Faroese authorities initiated proceedings against the EU
within the dispute-settlement mechanisms of the World Trade Organisation
and the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
The process of normalisation of
EU-Faroe Islands fishing relations started at the end of 2013 when the
Faroe Islands accepted to become part of the arrangement among coastal
States on the management of mackerel for 2014. This allowed an agreement
on traditional exchanges of fishing opportunities, including mutual
access to each other's fishing grounds. The on-going understanding on
herring is expected to be the end of the disputes and the beginning of a
better collaboration between the two parties.
As part of the political agreement reached in June 2014 (See also: IP/14/668)
it was understood that the Commission would submit a draft Regulation
repealing the measures adopted in 2013 to a Committee of Member States.
The Committee met 31 July and did not object to this Regulation and
hence the Commission launched the process of adoption of the draft
Regulation finalised today.
This Regulation, and the lifting
of the measures of the measures, will enter into force the day
following its imminent publication in the Official Journal of the EU.
