The Ministry of the Environment has issued a written notice to the Russian-Baltic port that the vessel should be expelled. The same letter has been sent to and received by the Environmental Inspectorate, the Estonian Maritime Administration and the Border Guard. The NEAFC has included the Pavlovsk on a list of ships which have been found to be involved in illegal, undeclared and unregulated fishing. In order to battle illegal fishing, member states of the NEAFC are not allowed to permit vessels included on the blacklist to enter their ports. The European Union is a party to the NEAFC agreement and as such the Commission’s regulations are also in force and enforceable in Estonia. Consequently, the vessel may not enter any other Estonian port either. Estonia must meet the obligations arising from its international agreements. “As a result we are able to prevent illegal fishing and the marketing of illegally caught fish, which is what we are doing in not allowing the vessel to call at our ports,” explained Ain Soome, head of the Fish Resources Department of the Ministry of the Environment. For additional information please contact: Ain Soome Director, Fish Resources Department, Estonian Ministry of the Environment Telephone: +372 626 0711 Mobile: +372 512 0430 |
