The director of Norwegian vessel operators’ federation Fiskebåt has voiced his dissatisfaction with the recently concluded agreement between the EU and Norway, stating that Norway was threatened with ‘irresponsible and unacceptable threats of an EU boycott’.
The EU fishing sector has been vocal in its demands for sanctions against Norway, primarily for its treatment of issues relating to mackerel fisheries. In Norway, Fiskebåt director Audun Maråk has accused the Norwegian ministry of foreign affairs of giving in to the EU’s demands, and stated that an agreement should not have been accepted under such circumstances.
‘When various Norwegian foreign ministers have taken over the job of solving difficult fisheries issues, the rule has been that Norway comes out badly. That’s the case now, although I feared that the outcome could have been even worse. We can probably thank the Minister of Fisheries and the Ministry of Trade and Fisheries for the fact that the result was not worse,’ Audun Maråk said.
The agreement extends to a number of outstanding issues in the area of fisheries, including a quota of Svalbard cod to the EU at the level of 2,8274% of the total allowable catch (TAC) for the next and the following years. This will allow EU vessels to fish the quota – corresponding to 9217 tonnes in 2025 – in both Svalbard and international waters.
‘Our joint work under the EU-Norway High-Level Dialogue has paid off. By injecting constructive dynamism into our talks – with a view to reaching balanced, mutually beneficial solutions – we have managed to address some of the difficult issues in the area of fisheries. Challenges remain between the EU and Norway in the fisheries sector. They need to be addressed in this spirit, step by step,’ stated Maroš Šefčovič, Executive Vice-President in charge of the European Green Deal as the agreement was reached.
‘The agreement will provide predictability in the Norwegian determination of the cod quota for the EU in the fishing protection zone at Svalbard, while at the same time it will ensure that all cod caught by EU vessels, also in Smutthullet (Loophole), is settled against the quota set by Norway,’ said Norway’s Minister of Fisheries and Oceans Marianne Sivertsen Næss.
Audun Maråk doesn’t agree with the Norwegian government’s view, and commented that, ‘under irresponsible and unacceptable threats of an EU boycott, the foreign minister caved in.’
In practice, the EU received full approval for its demands for increased cod shares, without accepting a ban on collection bags in Smutthullet. The EU is also allowed to continue fishing for Greenland halibut without quotas being deducted from its allocated quotas. With different regulatory regimes – and particularly Norwegian environmental taxes – Norway and Norwegian fishermen are the losers,’ Audun Maråk said.
