Artic cod. (Foto: Stock File)
Spain claims historic rights to Arctic cod fishing
SPAIN
Tuesday, October 10, 2017, 23:10 (GMT + 9)
The Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Food and the Environment, Isabel García Tejerina, participated yesterday in Luxembourg at the meeting of the Council of Ministers of Fisheries of the European Union, which approved the proposal for a regulation fixing TACs and quotas in the Baltic Sea for 2018.
Although Spain has no fishing interest in this area, it has been closely monitoring the negotiations, with the aim of ensuring that similar criteria are applied in all TACs and quotas proposals, irrespective of fishing populations or geographical areas to which they affect.
In her speech to the Council of Ministers, Isabel García Tejerina stressed that Spain is against sudden reductions in quotas in order to avoid large socio-economic repercussions of the fleet and that it considered it appropriate that the European eel management should be carried out within the framework of its plan recovery.
In addition, the Council of Ministers has set the guidelines for the exchange of fishing opportunities with Norway under the Bilateral Fisheries Agreement.
In this sense, Spain has again demanded its historic rights to Arctic cod fishing based on the agreement of the European Economic Area (as stipulated in the 1992 Port Exchange of Letters). These quotas amount to 1.24 per cent of the total TAC of the Arctic cod stock for the cohesion Member States.
Spain considers that these rights should be guaranteed in order to be able to enjoy them in their entirety, which has not been happening in recent years due to the European Union's lack of availability of interchangeable quotas of other species of interest to Norway.
Finally, at the Council meeting there was an exchange of views on the European Union's position at the ICCAT meeting from November 14 to 22 in Marrakesh (Morocco). In this area, Spain advocates a substantial increase in the TAC for bluefin tuna and a more moderate increase for albacore tuna, given that the scientific reports are very positive for both populations.
Minister Garcia Tejerina indicated the problems that are encountered for the implementation of the Fund and asked the European Commission for greater support and involvement to achieve a better implementation of the Fund.
Related article:
- Pew deems some Council’s 2018 Baltic catch limits ‘unjustified’
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