6. International Agreements 



Norway holds annual fishery consultations with 

 a number of countries. In 1992, discussions were 

 held with Russia, the EC, the Faroe Islands, 

 Greenland, Sweden, and Poland. In each instance, 

 access for Norwegian fishing vessels or fishing 

 quotas are sought in exchange for reciprocal access to 

 Norwegian grounds or fishing quotas. Norway also 

 participated in the North East Atlantic Fisheries 

 Commission (NEAFC) and in the Northwest Atlantic 

 Fisheries Organization (NAFO). 



Russia: A series of negotiations between Norway 

 and Russia during 1992 resulted in several bilateral 

 agreements covering several species. These 

 agreements provided for quotas for Arcto-Norwegian 

 cod (356,000 tons) and capelin (1,084,000 tons), and 

 set up rules governing the by-catch of Greenland 

 halibut. These accords cover both the Norwegian 

 Sea and the Barents Sea. 



European Community: Norway and the EC came 

 to an agreement on quotas in the North Sea. The 

 agreement included allocations of joint stocks 

 betweeen the two parties. Norway received a quotas 

 of 112,610 tons of herring and 54,415 tons of 

 mackerel in the North Sea. Norway was also 

 allowed 232,000 tons of blue whiting in an area 

 including the EC's EEZ as well as that of the Faroe 

 Islands. 



Iceland: Norway and Iceland reached an agreement 

 on reciprocal fishing on March 10, 1976. These 

 agreements have since been amended. The 

 agreement permits small quantities of cod, blue 

 whiting, herring, capelin, and other species to be 

 caught by Norwegian vessels in Icelandic waters and 

 Icelandic vessels in Norwegian waters during 

 specified times. 



Faroe Islands: Norway and the Faroe Islands have a 

 reciprocal fisheries agreement which allows 

 fishermen from each country to fish in waters of the 

 other country. 



Greenland: The Governments of Norway and 

 Greenland reached an agreement on fishing rights for 

 cod in late 1991. The agreement gives Greenland a 

 TAC for cod in the North Sea and Barents Sea in 

 exchange for Norwegian fishing in Greenland's 200- 



mile exclusive economic zone. The agreement was 

 arbitrated by Denmark. 



Sweden: There is a special tripartite agreement 

 between Norway, Sweden, and Denmark dating back 

 to 1966 which lasts until 2001. The agreement 

 allows fishermen from each country to fish up to 4 

 nautical miles from the baselines in the area of the 

 Skagerrak and the northern part of Kattegat, 

 irrespective of fisheries zones. The EC has assumed 

 legal responsibility to negotiate on behalf of Deimiark 

 in 1978.2' 



Jan Mayen: Norway has agreements with the EC, 

 Iceland, Greenland, Russia, the Faroe Islands, and 

 Poland concerning cooperation in the management of 

 capelin stocks which migrate between the Fishery 

 Zone around Jan Mayen and the Icelandic and 

 Greenland zones.*' The agreements also allow for 

 fishing of blue whiting in the region. 



Norway experienced problems with Caribbean- 

 flag fishing vessels in 1993. Two Caribbean-flag 

 vessels were discovered fishing in the "loophole" 

 around the Svalbard. The area is in international 

 waters around the Svalbard which is jointly 

 administered by Norway and Russia. A second 

 "loophole" exists in the Barents Sea between the 

 Russian and Norwegian EEZs in the Barents Sea." 



The trouble started during the summer of 1993 

 when Norway expelled two Caribbean-registered 

 fishing vessels from the area around Svalbard. The 

 vessels had sold their catch of cod in Iceland. 

 Following their expulsion, the vessels sailed to the 

 Barents Sea loophole, where they were joined by 4 

 other vessels."" 



7. Fleet Dispersal Plans 



The Government of Norway in 1991 studied the 

 possibilities of government support for fishing in 

 distant-waters. The Government concluded that no 

 policy was needed to encourage or discourage 

 Norwegian fishermen from fishing in distant-waters. 

 The Norwegian fleet is free to operate anywhere it 

 wishes, provided its activity is consistent with 

 international agreements and the legislation of coastal 

 states. Norwegian fishermen established joint venture 

 operations off New Zealand in 1989 and fished there 

 for 2 years. The venture apparently was not 



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