The Argentine Foreign Ministry denounced that British-flagged fishing vessels They operate “illegally in the waters surrounding the South Georgia Islands, with illegitimate licenses issued by the United Kingdom and outside the multilateral framework” that governs the activity in that area.
According to a statement released by Palacio San Martín, “fishing in these waters has been regulated since 1982 by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (Ccrrvma), a multilateral organization made up of 26 member countries, including Argentina and the United Kingdom”. “For this season, it was not possible to adopt a measure that would enable the fishing of the Patagonian toothfish species in Georgia. British fishing is therefore in violation of the Ccrvma regime that for 40 years managed to prevent overfishing and the collapse of the Antarctic marine ecosystem,” detailed in the document.
Argentina “categorically rejected, bilaterally and multilaterally, these unilateral measures by the United Kingdom, which constitute a serious breach of the rules of the Antarctic Treaty System.”
“Faced with this illegal situation, Argentina has been taking firm actions in defense of the multilateral regime and preserving the national position regarding the Malvinas Question,” the Foreign Ministry added.
He argued that the country “recently reaffirmed its position at the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting, the main Antarctic forum that met this year in Berlin.”
Argentina also urged all CCAMLR Members to avoid marketing the product of said illegal fishing.
“In turn, the Ccrvma Executive Secretariat was requested to include these British-flagged vessels on the list of vessels that engage in illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, requiring the support of the other Members in said process” , It indicated.
Finally, “Argentina reiterates its rejection of the unilateral actions of the United Kingdom, insofar as they violate the Crvma regime and do not conform to the principles of Antarctic cooperation and good faith that characterize the Antarctic Treaty System. Likewise, Argentina requests the immediate cessation of this illegal fishing”.
