Landen rond Baltische Zee schenken extra aandacht aan visserij (en)

Met dank overgenomen van Litouws voorzitterschap Europese Unie 2e helft 2013 i, gepubliceerd op dinsdag 17 december 2013.

On 17th of December Lithuanian Minister of Agriculture Prof. Vigilijus Jukna and his colleagues from the other EU Baltic Sea countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the principles and working methods of the Baltic Sea Fisheries Forum (BALTFISH).

“I would like to emphasize the importance of this project and to express my hope that BALTFISH will continue to be a flexible and constructive forum of the Baltic Sea EU Member States dealing with the fisheries issues,” said Minister Prof. V. Jukna at the signing ceremony.

The Baltfish project started in September 2010, when the Swedish Agricultural ministry initiated the project within the framework of the European Union Strategy for the Baltic Sea region.

The essence of the project was to improve and strengthen the cooperation of the Baltic Sea EU Member States when discussing and taking decision on fisheries issues.

The relevance and effectiveness of this project for all the Baltic Sea states became evident from the start. This project has become an example of rational and meaningful regional cooperation for all EU Member States which is one of the main principles of Common Fisheries Policy promoted by the European Commission.

The greatest success of the Baltfish project is that the regular meetings of fisheries experts and administration executives give a good and effective forum to discuss matters constructively, assess the newest information about the status of fish stocks and to deal with other topical fisheries issues.

The result of this successful cooperation in the BALTFISH forum is the submission of the common positions of all concerned Member States on the fishing opportunities in the Baltic Sea, which facilitates the negotiation process with European Commission. In turn, this ensures the optimal conditions for the fishing industry as well as the sustainable and responsible management of Baltic fisheries.

The success and relevance of this project encouraged to bring BALTFISH forum to the higher level, which is the Memorandum signed by the Ministers.