The United States has officially accepted the WTO agreement banning fisheries subsidies

A fishing boat in the Bay of Biscay between Spain and France on January 8, 2020 – AFP/File

The United States on Tuesday (11) formally accepted an agreement reached by the World Trade Organization (WTO) in June to eliminate fishing subsidies that threaten global fish stocks.

For the agreement to enter into force, two-thirds of the 164 WTO members must give their approval to the Geneva-based body.

This makes the US the first major fishing nation in the world to take this step. So far, only Singapore, Switzerland and the Seychelles archipelago have declared formal acceptance of the treaty after more than two decades of negotiations.

“This firm gesture of US support for the WTO’s work on ocean sustainability reflects the growing determination of member states to ensure the implementation of this historic agreement,” said Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, director-general of the organization. .

The agreement was made with certain concessions, not for overfishing in general, as it prohibited subsidizing overfishing of certain fish.

The US Foreign Trade Representative (USTR), Catherine Doy, celebrated at home and elsewhere that the US approval would “help improve the lives of fishermen and workers”.

Dai said Washington was proud to ratify “the first multilateral trade agreement focused on environmental sustainability.”

After reaching an agreement in June, WTO members agreed to continue negotiations on some outstanding issues to add some additional clauses during the 13th ministerial meeting in the United Arab Emirates in 2024.