WRITTEN QUESTION No. 2395/97 by Carmen FRAGA ESTÉVEZ to the Commission. Ban on the transhipment of swordfish catches by the Community fleet in Chilean ports
Date: 1997-07-10
Institutions: European Parliament, FRAGA ESTEVEZ
Subjects: Chile, EU Member State, GATT, cooperation agreement (EU), fishing fleet, free movement of goods, sea fish, technical barriers to trade, transit

C 117/16

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

16. 4. 98

(98/C 117/19)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2380/97

by Evelyne Gebhardt (PSE) to the Commission

(10 July 1997)

Subject: Assistance for the Lake Constance region

Can  the  Commission  say  how  much  assistance  the  Lake  Constance  region  (Landkreis  Konstanz,  Landkreis
Bodenseekreis, Lindau-Bodensee, Land Vorarlberg) has received from the European Union since 1990?

Supplementary answer
given by Mr Santer on behalf of the Commission

(24 November 1997)

In  view  of  the  length  of  its  answer,  the  Commission  is  sending  it  direct  to  the  Honourable  Member  and  to
Parliament(cid:146)s Secretariat.

(98/C 117/20)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2395/97

by Carmen Fraga Este·vez (PPE) to the Commission

(10 July 1997)

Subject: Ban on the transhipment of swordfish catches by the Community fleet in Chilean ports

Since 1990 Chile has been banning the transhipment of swordfish caught outside its waters by the Community
fleet, which constitutes a violation of GATT Article V.1 concerning (cid:145)freedom of transit(cid:146). The ban is based on the
request for a health certificate, which is unjustified for merchandise in transit and in practice is equivalent to
preventing transhipments, thereby violating the freedom of transit established by the afore-mentioned Article V
of GATT.

In her answer to Question H-0320/96 (1) on the same subject Commissioner Bonino said that the problem could
be settled under Article 30 of the EU/Chile Cooperation Agreement and that otherwise Article V of GATT would
be the only possible solution. Can the Commission therefore say when it intends to call for the application of
Article V of GATT to solve this problem?

(1)  Debates of the European Parliament (May 1996).

Answer given by Mrs Bonino on behalf of the Commission

(20 October 1997)

Article 30 of the new Cooperation Agreement with Chile signed on 21 June 1996 provides for cooperation on
fishing matters, including resource conservation.

On the disagreement to which the Honourable Member refers over landing of swordfish caught by Community
vessels outside the Chilean exclusive economic zone the Commission has ascertained Member States’ positions
through the appropriate channels and agreed with Chile on the need for an initial exchange of information on this
fishery and the state of stocks, with the ultimate aim of establishing technical and scientific cooperation in this
area.

Owing to lack of available information no progress has so far been made. However, given that cooperation ought
to  facilitate  the  adoption  of  a  mutually  satisfactory  solution  to  the  present  difficulty,  both  parties  are  at  the
moment completing collection of the necessary information with a view to opening technical discussions in the
very near future.