EU-Morocco fisheries deal stuck pending court decision on self-determination claim

A long-standing multi-million euro fisheries deal between the European Union and the Kingdom of Morocco expired on Monday (17 July) due to a dispute over its legality and the inclusion of Western Sahara’s representatives in the negotiations, pending a decision from the EU’s highest court.

The expiration will leave EU vessels without a license to fish in the Moroccan exclusive economic zone (EEZ), including Western Sahara waters.

The deal was initially agreed in 1988 after Spain joined the EU, with the 2019-2023 renewal agreement between the EU and Morocco earmarking €208 million in exchange for 128 fishing licences. This translated into around €50 million directed to Morocco each year.

However, a further renewal will hinge on a ruling by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in a case brought by the Popular Front for the Liberation of the Saguia el Hamra and Rio de Oro (Polisario Front), who represent the independence movement for Western Sahara, and who argued that the deal is illegal as it did not include people from the territory in negotiations.

Western Sahara is a disputed territory between Morocco and the Polisario Front, following its annexation – illegal under international law – by Morocco after the Spanish process of decolonisation in 1975.

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‘No negotiations between EU and Morocco’

The ECJ has repeatedly overturned – most recently in 2018 and 2021 – the application of the fisheries agreement to Western Sahara, stating that Morocco has no sovereignty over the territory and has not gained consent from the people of Western Sahara to ratify the agreement.

The last ruling in favour of the Polisario Front’s case, in 2021, was appealed by the EU Council and Commission, and a final ruling is expected later this year – months after the current deal expires.

In the meantime, the 2023 Joint Committee Meeting on fisheries between the EU and Morocco took place last Thursday (13 July) and “was the occasion to recall the importance of our relationship in fisheries matters,” a Commission’s spokesperson said.

However, the spokesperson also confirmed that “there is currently no negotiation taking place between the European Union and Morocco in the field of fisheries.”

“When it comes to the future, like our Moroccan partners and in close consultation with them, the EU will reflect and assess a possible renewal of the fisheries protocol,” the spokesperson said, adding that “any decision will be taken jointly with our Moroccan partners in the shared interest of both parties.”

The Commission did not refer to or mention Western Sahara in any of its responses to EURACTIV.

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‘Co-financed’ aid for Spanish fishers

On Monday, before the start of the first informal EU fisheries ministers’ meeting held by the Spanish EU Council presidency, fisheries minister Luis Planas announced compensation measures for fishers who have used their licences under the EU – Morocco agreement for at least 20 days in the past three years – which covers 11 vessels.

The total support will amount to €302,000 and will be co-financed by the EU – under the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund – and Spain, Planas explained.

Spain has the most licences from the agreement, over 90, but according to the minister, only 21 Spanish vessels – 11 from Andalusia and 10 from the Canary Islands – are using them.

Planas, a former ambassador to Morocco, told EURACTIV earlier this month that the deal “has an undoubted fishing economic content, but it is also one of the stable links of the strategic association between Morocco and the European Union.”

He added that “Morocco considers that it is very difficult to enter into the substance of the negotiation before the conclusion [of the ECJ case]” and maintained that the agreement is “perfectly legal.”

Speaking about the joint committee meeting with his Moroccan counterpart, he said, “it was decided to continue the technical studies so that once the ruling of the European Court of Justice is handed down, the conclusion of the work on the new protocol can be accelerated.”

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Rabat’s ‘diplomatic strategy’

According to the United Nations (UN), Western Sahara is a Non-Self-Governing Territory “whose people have not yet attained a full measure of self-government” since 1963 – when it was under Spanish colonisers.

The UN recognises the Polisario Front as the representative of the people of Western Sahara.

“The core issue here is self-determination,” Western Sahara Resource Watch (WSRW) international coordinator Sara Eyckmans told EURACTIV.

“The people of Western Sahara have an internationally recognised and supported right to self-determination,” she said, adding, “that means they have the right to determine the political status of the territory and of the resources.”

According to her, Morocco’s interest in the agreement goes beyond fishing and economic terms – it is to gather support from international actors for their claim that Western Sahara is part of Moroccan territory.

“For them, this is very much a diplomatic tool to sort of gain implicit recognition of their untenable claim on Western Sahara,” she said.

Eyckmans added that, by continuing this agreement, “the EU is not only paying Morocco to get access to the waters of Western Sahara” but is also “effectively paying Morocco to build up fisheries infrastructure in Western Sahara through new agreements.”

Likewise, Andreas Schieder, a socialist MEP who chairs the European Parliament’s Western Sahara Intergroup, said in a statement that the EU “has been complicit in the illegal exploitation of natural resources and the entrenchment of illegal occupation in Western Sahara, and has undermined UN efforts to find a lasting solution to the long-standing conflict.”

“In future, there must be no more agreements on the fisheries resources of Western Sahara that are not concluded with the Polisario Front as the legitimate political representation of the local people,” he added.

Western Sahara has one of the richest coastlines in the world, according to WSRW. It accounted for 73% of Morocco’s annual coastal and artisanal catches in 2020, over half of the national total value of catches, and has the two top ports in terms of landing volume.

Legality of the EU-Morocco fisheries agreement questioned

A respected international lawyer has published an article, claiming that the fisheries agreement between the EU and Morocco is illegal, as it doesn’t contain a specific reference to the fishing zone off the coast of Western Sahara, and that the UN Security Council (UNSC) should examine the issue.

Fishers move past diplomatic barriers

While the deadlock between Morocco and the EU awaits a court decision, the Polisario Front and affected fishers from the Canary Islands started negotiations last week to discuss their cooperation outside of the EU-Morocco agreement.

The Polisario Front has proposed to provide fishing licences to Canary Island fishers affected by the cessation of the agreement, a move that was well received by the Regional Federation of Fishermen’s Guilds of the Canary Islands, according to local media.

“We are at your disposal to find a legal framework for you to continue with the activity. You are victims of an illegal agreement between Morocco and the EU,” Abdulah Arabi, Polisario representative in Spain, told Spanish newspaper El Independiente.

This is the first time both parties have engaged in bilateral meetings to seek solutions without passing through Moroccan authorities.

On the other hand, the Spanish fishing confederation CEPESCA is calling on EU and Moroccan negotiators to “try to define as soon as possible the technical conditions that would guide the renewal of the fishing protocol.”

For Javier Garat, Cepesca’s general secretary, “the finalisation of the fishing agreement with Morocco also translates into a new restriction on the fishing activity of our fleet, subject to recent months to numerous closures of fishing grounds”.

Contacted by EURACTIV, the Moroccan embassy did not respond at the time of publication.

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[Edited by Gerardo Fortuna/Alice Taylor]

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