Sustainable fisheries, including through the 1995 Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of
the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation
and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, and related instruments
A/RES/72/72
when there is clear evidence that they are or have been engaged in or have supported
illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, or when they refuse to give information
either on the origin of the catch or on the authorization under which the catch has
been made;
82. Reaffirms paragraph 53 of its resolution 64/72 of 4 December 2009 with
regard to eliminating illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing by vessels flying
“flags of convenience” and requiring that a “genuine link” be established between
States and fishing vessels flying their flags, and urges States operating open registry
to effectively control all fishing vessels flying their flag, as required by international
law, or otherwise stop open registry for fishing vessels;
83. Notes the challenges posed by vessels determined under international law
to be without nationality that are fishing on the high seas and that such vessels are
engaging in illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing activities as defined under the
International Plan of Action to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and
Unregulated Fishing of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations,
and encourages States to take necessary measures where appropriate, consistent with
international law, including enacting domestic legislation, in order to prevent and
deter vessels without nationality from engaging in or supporting illegal, unreported
and unregulated fishing;
84. Encourages States, either directly or through competent and appropriate
subregional, regional or global organizations and arrangements, to consider adopting
rules, consistent with international law, to ensure that chartering arrangements and
practices related to fishing vessels enable compliance with and enforcement of
relevant conservation and management measures, so as not to undermine efforts to
combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing;
85. Recognizes the need for enhanced port State measures to combat illegal ,
unreported and unregulated fishing, and urges States to cooperate, in particular at the
regional level and through subregional and regional fisheries management
organizations and arrangements, to adopt all necessary port measures, consistent with
international law taking into account article 23 of the Agreement, and to further
promote the development and application of standards at the regional level;
86. Welcomes the recent accessions to the Agreement on Port State Measures
to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing, 6 and
encourages States and regional economic integration organizations that have not yet
done so to consider ratifying, accepting, approving or acceding to that Agreement;
87. Acknowledges, in this regard, the convening of the first meeting of the
parties to the Agreement on Port State Measures to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate
Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing, held in Oslo from 29 to 3 1 May 2017,
which, inter alia, established an open-ended technical working group to provide
guidance on elaborating information exchange mechanisms and other technical
matters and established an ad hoc working group under Part 6 of the Agreement and
approved its terms of reference; 21
88. Notes the capacity development programme of the Food and Agriculture
Organization of the United Nations aimed at facilitating and supporting the
implementation of the Agreement on Port State Measures to Prevent, Deter and
Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing and related instruments, which
contributes to the development of national capacity of both parties and non -parties,
including the strengthening of the institutional, operational and enforcement capacity
of developing States with a view to maximizing the benefits of its implementation;
__________________
21
18/38
See Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, document FIAP/R1211 (En).
17-21818