At the Agriculture and Fisheries Council on Tuesday 26 March, Portugal, supported by 14 other countries (including Spain, France, Italy, Poland, Romania, Malta, Hungary and Croatia), called for an extension, until the end of 2024, of the eligibility period for the 2022 decision providing for exceptional aid due to the effects of the war in Ukraine launched by Russia.
The decision (https://aeur.eu/f/bke ), which has now expired, opened up the possibility for the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF) to support compensation paid to operators in the fisheries and aquaculture sector for the loss of income or additional costs they face.
Last December, Portugal had already requested such an extension, but the European Commission had “turned a deaf ear”, saying that the required criteria had not been met, the Portuguese minister, Maria do Céu Antunes, noted. France has asked the Commission to authorise the introduction of short-term measures on the basis of Article 26.2 of the EMFAF, relating to exceptional events.
The conditions have not been met. On behalf of the European Commission, Stella Kyriakides felt that the EMFAF was a structural support fund and as such, “should be used to bring about lasting structural change in the sector”. Crisis support is, by its very nature, temporary support for operators to overcome a shock, the Commission explained. “Today, the situation is generally stable”, according to Ms Kyriakides, who believes that the higher inflation rates do not constitute an unusual or exceptional situation.
Prices are higher, but supply and demand conditions on the market remain good, according to the Commission. The EMFAF crisis mechanism can only be triggered in the event of exceptional events leading to major market disruption. At this stage, the circumstances do not appear to meet the conditions, according to the Commission. “We have not seen any significant disruption to the markets in 2023 and we do not see any indications of this at present for 2024”, summarised Ms Kyriakides, who pointed out that the decision on war-related emergency aid expired at the end of 2022. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)