01/12/2017 (Agence Europe) – The EU, Canada, China, Denmark, the United States, Iceland, Japan, Korea, Norway and Russia came to an agreement in Washington on 30 November to prevent unregulated commercial fishing in the high seas of the Arctic while awaiting sufficient scientific advice. With global warming, the temperature of the water in the Arctic is rising, making it more attractive for fishing. Hitherto, most of the Arctic high seas were not covered by any international conservation or management scheme. The agreement is a first step towards setting up regional fisheries management organisations for the central Arctic Ocean, in order to ensure that, in future, all fishing will be conducted sustainably. The agreement will come into force when 10 of the participating parties have signed and ratified it. (Original version in French)