News / Iceland responds to sanctions threat
ICELAND has called on the European Union to actively promote a solution to the ongoing mackerel dispute in the north east Atlantic instead of imposing sanctions.
The chief negotiator of the Icelandic delegation, Tomas Heidar, said trade restrictions being considered by the European Commission would breach international trade agreements.
On Wednesday, the commission announced they were seeking authority from the European Parliament and the European Council to impose sanctions against other countries that overfish jointly managed stocks.
For the last 18 months, the EU, Norway, Faroe and Iceland have been at war over fishing rights on the valuable stock of mackerel. Every year around 650,000 tonnes are caught in the north east Atlantic.
The EU, including the UK, and Norway insist on their historic fishing rights in the area which gives them a share of above 90 per cent of the total allowable catch (TAC).
Faroe and Iceland say the stock has changed its migrating pattern and spends more time in their national waters.
Last year the two Nordic island states caught almost 300,000 tonnes of mackerel, with no joint management agreement in place.
Mr Heidar said mackerel shoals spend between four and five months fattening up in Icelandic waters. Iceland, therefore, needs a fair share of this.
“An agreement must take into account the fact that in recent years around 1.1 million tonnes of mackerel, a quarter of the overall stock, migrates annually into the Icelandic exclusive economic zone during the feeding season (4-5 months).
“It is estimated that mackerel increases its weight in the Icelandic zone during the summer months by around 60 per cent with obvious impacts on other important fish stocks and the Icelandic marine ecosystem as a whole.
“The mackerel therefore increases its weight in the Icelandic zone by around 660,000 tonnes annually, almost five times the amount of the Icelandic mackerel fishing this year,” he said.
He added that Iceland had no problem with the EU banning their vessels from landing mackerel in EU ports since they were not doing this anyhow.
In fact, under Icelandic law, any fishing vessel that catches fish from a shared stock that has no management agreement in place is not permitted to land its catch in Iceland.
He said: “The Icelandic authorities obviously do not object to the same rules applying to the landing by Icelandic fishing vessels in foreign ports as apply to the landing by foreign fishing vessels in Icelandic ports.
“However, it is quite clear that trade restrictions and other such trade measures have no basis and are in violation of the EEA Agreement, the EFTA Agreement, the WTO Agreement and other international trade agreements.
“I therefore do not find it credible that the EU would seriously consider applying such measures,” he added.
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