The EU Council of Ministers adopted on Monday, 8 April, a decision authorising the European Commission to sign the Declaration by the European Union and Canada concerning the establishment of an Ocean Partnership.
This Declaration will be signed by the parties at the upcoming EU-Canada Summit.
The EU-Canada Ocean Partnership includes several areas of dialogue and cooperation, such as: ocean governance, marine and maritime science, conservation and sustainable management of marine ecosystems, common challenges and opportunities relating to the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, concerted action in implementing the Paris Agreement on climate change, exchange of best practices to prevent, monitor and significantly reduce pollution of all kinds in the oceans, exchange of best practices to establish high-level environmental standards for deep sea exploration, promoting sustainable fishing, as well as strengthening the effectiveness of systems of control, inspection and enforcement concerning both fisheries management and the protection of the marine environment.
On 8 March 2018, the EU Council authorised the Commission to open negotiations on behalf of the European Union on an ocean partnership with Canada.
To read the text of the declaration: https://bit.ly/2D1l4Ra. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)