Split EU Council decides to renew EU-Morocco fish pact
Article image
Despite an unseen division on the issue, a slim majority in the Council assured the one-year prolongation of the controversial EU-Morocco fisheries agreement. Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands, Finland, the UK, Cyprus and Austria could not agree to the proposal.
Published 30 June 2011


29 June 2010
Fishelsewhere


After continuous delays due to concerns on the agreement’s impact on occupied Western Sahara, the final decision to adopt the one-year extension of the EU’s most criticised fisheries agreement was made today by the Member States' ambassadors.

In a surprising last minute turn-around, and in spite of previous reservations, Germany decided to agree to the proposal – tipping the final turn-out in favour of the French-Spanish advocated prolongation. Rationalising their stance, Germany claims that Morocco has sufficiently proven that the local population of Western Sahara benefits from the agreement.

7 other EU Member States were less convinced of the Moroccan reports. Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands voted against, while the UK, Austria, Finland and Cyprus abstained. Their position is backed-up by a legal opinion issued by the European Parliament in 2009, stating that the EU-Morocco fish deal was in violation of international law for failing to take into account the wishes and interests of the Saharawi people.

The provisional agreement suits the interests of Spain, which holds no less than 100 out of the 119 fishing licences available under the FPA. The former colonial power of Western Sahara was eager to underscore that the agreement is not just important in terms of fishing opportunities, but also has a political importance, referring to Morocco’s ongoing cosmetic constitutional reforms.

As far as WSRW understands, some other countries, which ended up supporting the extension, did issue statements that their endorsement is conditional upon the Commission providing “concrete” information on the impact of the investments made through the agreement.

Today's decision will be formally adopted by the European Council of Ministers in the coming weeks. The provisional protocol now has to pass through the European Parliament, which is not expected to express its opinion before October.

EU Court adviser confirms separate and distinct status of Western Sahara

The Advocate General of the EU’s top Court backs the legal status of the people of Western Sahara. Final Judgment expected in a few months. 

21 March 2024

EU Court adviser: fruit from Western Sahara should not be labelled as from Morocco

Labelling those products as originating in the Kingdom of Morocco instead of originating in Western Sahara breaches EU law, the Advocate General of the EU Court of Justice concludes.

21 March 2024

COWI abandons future projects in Western Sahara

After undertaking work for the Moroccan state phosphate company in Western Sahara, the Danish consultancy giant COWI states that it “will not engage in further projects" in the occupied territory.

11 March 2024

Report: EU-Morocco fisheries depends on illegal occupation

An external evaluation report on the EU-Morocco fisheries agreement 2019-2023 confirms that the agreement revolves, in its entirety, around Western Sahara.

08 March 2024