Brussels, 09/12/2008 (Agence Europe) - After two years of talks, the European Parliament and the Council of the EU reached agreement in the evening of Monday 8 December 2008 in conciliation on the third package of EU maritime legislation (ERIKA III). The European Parliament achieved two major breakthroughs vis-à-vis the financial solvency of shipping companies. On the draft directive on shipping companies in the event of accidents (one of the package's seven items of legislation that was...