On Friday 29 September, the European Commission proposed that the fisheries partnership agreement between the European Community and Comoros be terminated because the island nation is not doing enough to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
The EU had already decided, in July, to give Comoros a “red card”, listing it among the “non-cooperating countries” (see EUROPE 11827). Since 2015, the European Commission has been engaged in dialogue with Comoros, based on an action plan to address shortcomings related to: the Comoros authorities’ policy on flags of convenience; the lack or inadequacy of national authorities’ control and surveillance capacity; the nation’s outdated legal framework for fisheries. Still Comoros has failed, within a reasonable timescale, to take the corrective measures needed to resolve the problems identified, in the Commission’s view. It has decided therefore that the agreement, which came into effect in 2008, should be terminated.