Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union at the ninth session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds with regard to an amendment to Table 1 of Annex 3 of the Agreement
Date: 2025-09-25
Institutions: Directorate-General for Environment, European Commission
Subjects: United Kingdom, bird, environmental cooperation, multilateral agreement, protection of animal life, revision of an agreement

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   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 25.9.2025  COM(2025) 522 final 2025/0293 (NLE)  Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union at the ninth session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds with regard to an amendment to Table 1 of Annex 3 of the Agreement  
 
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

1. 

SUBJECT MATTER OF THE PROPOSAL 

This  proposal  concerns  the  decision  establishing  the  position  to  be  taken  on  the  European 
Union’s  behalf  at  the  ninth  session  of  the  Meeting  of  the  Parties  to  the  Agreement  on  the 
Conservation  of  African-Eurasian  Migratory  Waterbirds  (AEWA)  in  connection  with  the 
envisaged adoption of an amendment to Table 1 of Annex 3 of the Agreement. 

2. 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

2.1. 

The Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds 

The AEWA is dedicated to the conservation of migratory waterbirds and their habitats across 
Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia, Greenland and the Canadian Archipelago. 

Developed  under  the  Convention  on  Migratory  Species  and  administered  by  the  United 
Nations  Environment  Programme,  the  AEWA  brings  together  countries  and  the  wider 
international  conservation  community  in  an  effort  to  establish  coordinated  conservation  and 
management of migratory waterbirds throughout their entire migratory range. 

The Agreement entered into force on 1 November 1999. The EU has been a Contracting Party 
to this Agreement since 1 October 2005 (1). At present, there are 85 Contracting Parties, 46 
from Eurasia (including the EU) and 39 from Africa. 24 EU Member States are parties to the 
Agreement (2). 
Directive  2009/147/EC  on  the  conservation  of  wild  birds  (the  Birds  Directive) (3)  is  the 
instrument in EU law that implements the commitments set out in the Agreement. The Birds 
Directive relates to the conservation of all species of naturally occurring birds in the wild state 
in  the  European  territory  of  the  Member  States  to  which  the  Treaty  applies.  It  covers  the 
protection and conservation of these species and lays down rules for their exploitation. 

2.2. 

The Meeting of the Parties 

The  Meeting  of  the  Parties  is  the  principal  decision-making  body  for  the  Agreement.  It  has 
powers to  review the Annexes to  the Agreement  and it meets  every three years. Each Party 
has one vote, but regional economic integration organisations like the EU exercise their right 
to vote with a number of votes equal to the number of their Member States that are Parties to 
the Agreement. Any amendment to an Annex must be adopted by a two-thirds majority of the 
Parties present at the meeting. 

The Ninth Meeting of the Parties of the Agreement will take place on 11-15 November 2025 
in Bonn, Germany. 

2.3. 

The envisaged act  

On  11-15  November  2025,  the  Meeting  of  the  Parties  is  to  adopt  Resolution  9.xx  on  the 
adoption of amendments to the AEWA Annexes in accordance with Article X, paragraph 5 

(1) 

Council  Decision  2006/871/EC  of  18  July  2005  on  the  conclusion  on  behalf  of  the  European 
Community  of  the  Agreement  on  the  Conservation  of  African-Eurasian  Migratory  Waterbirds.  OJ  L  345, 
8.12.2006, p. 24. 

(2) 
(3) 

Three Member States are not Parties to the Agreement: Austria, Malta and Poland. 
7, 
OJ 

26.01.2010, 

L 20 

of 

p. 

http://eur-

lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2010:020:0007:0025:EN:PDF. 

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of the Agreement (‘the envisaged act’). 

The purpose of the envisaged act is to amend Annex 2 of the Agreement, the AEWA Action 
Plan in Annex 3 and Table 1 of Annex 3 of the Agreement. While Annex 2 comprises the list 
of migratory waterbirds to which the Agreement applies, Annex 3 specifies actions that the 
Parties must undertake in relation to priority species. The priority species are listed in Table 
1 of Annex 3 according to certain criteria set out in the same table. 

Article  II  of  the  Agreement  provides  for  the  following:  ‘Parties  shall  take  co-ordinated 
measures to maintain migratory waterbird species in a favourable conservation status or to 
restore them to such a status. To this end, they shall apply within the limits of their national 
jurisdiction  the  measures  prescribed  in  Article  III,  together  with  the  specific  actions 
determined in the Action Plan provided for in Article IV, of this Agreement’. 

The  envisaged  act  will  enter  into  force  for  all  Parties  and  become  binding  on  them  on  the 
ninetieth day after the date of its adoption by the Meeting of the Parties, except for Parties 
that  have  entered  a  reservation.  During  the  ninety-day  period,  any  Party  may,  by  written 
notification to the Depositary, enter a reservation with respect to an amendment to an Annex. 

3. 

POSITION TO BE TAKEN ON THE EUROPEAN UNION’S BEHALF 

The  amendments  to  Annex  2  of  the  Agreement,  the  AEWA  Action  Plan  in  Annex  3  and 
Table  1  of  Annex  3  contained  in  the  envisaged  act  were  proposed  by  the  United 
Kingdom (4), based on the recommendations by the AEWA Technical Committee: 

(1) 

The proposed amendments to Annex 2 and the AEWA Action Plan in Annex 3 are 
consistent with and do not entail any modification to the Birds Directive, which is the 
EU legal implementation tool of the Agreement.  These amendments, mainly rooted 
in  scientific  progress  and  in  the  precautionary  principle,  will  be  discussed  with 
Member  States  in  the  relevant  Expert  Group  on  the  Nature  Directives  and  the 
Council  Working  Parties.  They  can  be  approved  on  behalf  of  the  EU  by  the 
Commission, in line with Articles 3(1) and 3(3) of Council Decision 2006/871/EC of 
18 July 2005  on  the  conclusion  on  behalf  of  the  European  Community  of  the 
Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds. 

(2) 

The proposed amendments to Table 1 of Annex 3 consist of changing the categories 
of  certain  species’  populations,  following  the  evidence  gathered  as  part  of  the  9th 
edition of the AEWA Conservation Status Report. 

Most  of  the  proposed  amendments  are  consistent  with  and  do  not  entail  any 
modification  to  the  Birds  Directive,  which  is  the  EU  legal  implementation  tool  of 
the Agreement. They can be approved on behalf of the EU by the Commission, in 
line with Articles 3(1) and 3(3) of Council Decision 2006/871/EC. 

However, the change in the listing of one population of one species is not conform 
to  the  relevant  EU  legislation  (the  Birds  Directive).  This  amendment  concerns  a 
change from Column B2(e) to Column A1(b) of Table 1 for the Western Europe & 
Western Africa population of the Grey Plover (Pluvialis squatarola squatarola). The 
envisaged change for the Grey Plover population means that no more hunting would 
be allowed under the Agreement, although the species is listed in Annex II, Part B of 
the  Birds  Directive  and  thus  huntable  in  some  Member  States.  Therefore,  this 

(4) 

AEWA Notification 2025/016: Received Proposals to MOP9 for  Amendments to the Agreement, sent 
on 18 July 2025. 

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amendment,  if  adopted,  will  require  stronger  legal  protection  for  the  species  than 
what  is  required  under  EU  law.  However,  the  change  in  the  listing  is  considered 
necessary,  as  the  species  has  recently  been  listed  as Vulnerable  on  the  IUCN  Red 
List of Threatened Species (Global) following its update in 2024. 
It is  thus  necessary  to  establish a position on behalf of the  EU pursuant  to Article 
218(9) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) to approve 
this  amendment  on  behalf  of  the  Union.  However,  in  line  with  Article  3(4)  of 
Council  Decision  2006/871/EC,  the  Commission  should  enter  a  reservation  with 
regard  to  the  proposed  amendment  concerning  the  Grey  Plover,  as  it  did  for 
amendments  with  similar  effects  at  previous  meetings  of  the  Parties.  This  is 
necessary  since  this  amendment  would  require  an  amendment  to  the  Birds 
Directive, which is not possible within 90 days of the date of their adoption by the 
Meeting of the Parties. 

4. 

LEGAL BASIS 

4.1. 

Procedural legal basis 

The  Meeting  of  the  Parties  is  a  body  set  up  by  the  Agreement  on  the  Conservation  of 
African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds. 

The act that the Meeting of the Parties is called upon to adopt constitutes an act  with legal 
effects.  The  envisaged  act  will  be  binding  under  international  law  and  is  capable  of 
decisively influencing the content of EU legislation, namely the EU Birds Directive. This is 
because some actions, in particular on hunting, that the Parties are to undertake in relation to 
priority species listed in Table 1 of Annex 3 are not always compatible with what the Birds 
Directive provides for the same species. If a species listed in Annex II of the Birds Directive 
becomes  no  longer  huntable  under  the  AEWA,  the  Birds  Directive  would  need  to  be 
amended.  

Under  Article  3  of  Council  Decision  2006/871/EC  as  regards  matters  falling  within 
Community  competence,  the  Commission  is  authorised  ‘to  approve,  on  behalf  of  the 
Community,  amendments  to  the  Annexes  to  the  Agreement  adopted  in  accordance  with 
Article X(5) of the Agreement.’ However, this authorisation is ‘limited to those amendments 
that are consistent with, and do not entail any modification of, Community legislation on the 
conservation of wild birds and their natural habitats.’ 

Since the proposed amendment to Table 1 of Annex 3 concerning the Grey Plover (Pluvialis 
squatarola  squatarola)  would  require  an  amendment  to  the  Birds  Directive,  a  Council 
decision  is  needed  to  establish  the  position  to  be  taken  on  behalf  of  the  EU  in  the  Ninth 
Meeting of the Parties of the Agreement on this matter (5). 

The  envisaged  act  does  not  supplement  or  amend  the  institutional  framework  of  the 
Agreement. 

The procedural legal basis for the proposed decision is therefore Article 218(9) TFEU. 

4.2. 

Substantive legal basis 

The substantive legal basis for a decision under Article 218(9) TFEU depends primarily on 
the objective and content of the envisaged act in respect of which a position is taken on the 
EU’s  behalf.  If  the  envisaged  act  pursues  two  aims  or  has  two  components  and  if  one  of 

(5) 

For  amendments  that  would  not  require  an  amendment  to  the  Birds  Directive,  the  Commission  may 
approve them in accordance with Council Decision 2006/871/EC of 18 July 2005.   

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those  aims  or  components  is  identifiable  as  the  main  one,  whereas  the  other  is  merely 
incidental, the decision under Article 218(9) TFEU must be founded on a single substantive 
legal basis, namely that required by the main or predominant aim or component. 

The main objective and content of the envisaged act relate to the environment. 

The substantive legal basis of the proposed decision is therefore Article 192(1) TFEU. 

4.3. 

Conclusion 

The legal basis of the proposed decision should be Article 192(1) TFEU, in conjunction with 
Article 218(9) TFEU. 

5. 

PUBLICATION OF THE ENVISAGED ACT 

As the envisaged act of the Meeting of the Parties to the Agreement on the Conservation of 
African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds will amend Annex 3, it is appropriate to publish it in 
the Official Journal of the European Union after its adoption. 

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2025/0293 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union at the ninth session of the 
Meeting of the Parties to the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian 
Migratory Waterbirds with regard to an amendment to Table 1 of Annex 3 of the 
Agreement 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
Article 192(1) TFEU, in conjunction with Article 218(9) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

The  Agreement  on  the  Conservation  of  African-Eurasian  Migratory  Waterbirds  (‘the 
Agreement’) entered into force on 1 November 1999 and was approved on behalf of 
the European Union by Council Decision 2006/871/EC (6). 

Pursuant to Article X, paragraph 5 of the Agreement, the Meeting of the Parties may 
adopt amendments to Annexes of the Agreement. 

The  Ninth  Meeting  of  the  Parties  on  11-15  November  2025  is  expected  to  adopt  a 
resolution  on  the  adoption  of  amendments  to  the  Annexes  to  the  Agreement.  The 
proposed amendment to Table 1 of Annex 3 of the Agreement concerning the species 
Grey  Plover  (Pluvialis  squatarola  squatarola)  would, 
if  adopted,  require  a 
modification  of  Directive  2009/147  and  therefore  falls  outside  the  scope  of  the 
amendments  that  can  be  approved  by  the  Commission  pursuant  to  Article  3(1)  in 
conjunction with 3(3) of Council Decision 2006/871/EC. 

It is necessary to establish the position to be taken on the EU’s behalf in the Meeting 
of  the  Parties  on  the  proposed  amendment  to  Table  1  of  Annex  3  of  the  Agreement 
concerning  the  species  Grey  Plover  (Pluvialis  squatarola  squatarola)  as  the 
amendment  will  be  binding  on  the  EU  and  capable  of  decisively  influencing  the 
content of EU law, namely the Birds Directive.  

The proposed amendment to Table 1 of Annex 3 of the Agreement submitted by the 
United  Kingdom  and  set  out  in  draft  Resolution  9.xx  concerning  the  species  Grey 
Plover  (Pluvialis  squatarola  squatarola)  should  be  approved  on  behalf  of  the 
European  Union  as  it  helps  achieve  a  higher  degree  of  protection  of  this  species’ 
populations that are in decline.  

(6) 

OJ L345, 8.12.2006, p. 24. 

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HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION: 

Article 1 

The  position  to  be  taken  on  the  EU’s  behalf  at  the  Ninth  Meeting  of  the  Parties  to  the 
Agreement shall be the following: 

The amendment to Table 1 of Annex 3 of the Agreement submitted by the United Kingdom 
and  set  out  in  draft  Resolution  9.xx  of  the  Ninth  Meeting  of  the  Parties  to  the  Agreement 
concerning the Grey Plover (Pluvialis squatarola squatarola) shall be approved at the Ninth 
Meeting of the Parties on behalf of the European Union. 

This Decision shall enter into force on the date of its adoption. 

Done at Brussels, 

Article 2 

For the Council 
The President 

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