Considerations on COM(2022)88 - EU position in the IMO as regards the revision of resolution and amending the Convention on FAL on standards for survival craft communication apparatus

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dossier COM(2022)88 - EU position in the IMO as regards the revision of resolution and amending the Convention on FAL on standards for survival ...
document COM(2022)88 EN
date March  7, 2022
 
(1) The Convention on the International Maritime Organization (‘IMO’) entered into force on 17 March 1958.

(2) The IMO is a specialised agency of the United Nations with responsibility for the safety and security of shipping and the prevention of marine and atmospheric pollution by ships. All Union Member States are members of the IMO. The Union is not a member of the IMO.

(3) Pursuant to Article 28(b) of the Convention on the IMO, the Maritime Safety Committee provides machinery for the performance of any duties assigned to it in accordance with that Convention, by the IMO Assembly or by the IMO Council, or any duty within the scope of that Article which may be assigned to the Maritime Safety Committee under any other international instrument and accepted by the IMO.

(4) Pursuant to Article 48(a) of the Convention on the IMO, the Facilitation Committee may adopt amendments to the Convention on Facilitation of International Maritime Traffic (‘FAL Convention’) 6 . All Member States are parties to the FAL Convention. The Union is not a party to that Convention.

(5) The Maritime Safety Committee, during its 105th session from 20 to 29 April 2022, is to approve a resolution on performance standards for survival craft portable two-way very high frequency (VHF) radiotelephone apparatus, revising resolution MSC.149(77).

(6) The Facilitation Committee, during its 46th session from 9 to 13 May 2022, is to adopt amendments to the Annex to the FAL Convention. 

(7) It is appropriate to establish the position to be taken on the Union’s behalf during the 105th session of the Maritime Safety Committee, as the envisaged MSC resolution on performance standards for survival craft portable two-way VHF radiotelephone apparatus, revising resolution MSC.149(77), will be capable of decisively influencing the contents of Union law, namely Directive 2014/90/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 2014 on marine equipment and repealing Council Directive 96/98/EC  7 .

(8) The adoption of the MSC resolution on performance standards for survival craft portable two-way VHF radiotelephone apparatus, revising resolution MSC.149(77) would improve the previously adopted performance standards for survival craft portable two-way VHF radiotelephone apparatus. The Union should therefore support the resolution, as it is meant to cater for the modernization of the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) and include the unified interpretation regarding the battery validity dates for survival craft portable two-way VHF radiotelephone apparatus.

(9) It is appropriate to establish the position to be taken on the Union’s behalf during the 46th session of the Facilitation Committee, as the envisaged amendments to the Annex of the FAL Convention will be capable of decisively influencing the content of Union law, namely Directive 2010/65/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 October 2010 on reporting formalities for ships arriving in and/or departing from ports of the Member States and repealing Directive 2002/6/EC 8 and, as from the date when it becomes applicable, Regulation (EU) 2019/1239 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 establishing a European Maritime Single Window environment and repealing Directive 2010/65/EU (EMSWe Regulation) 9 .

(10) The amendments to the Annex of the FAL Convention would bring the Annex to the FAL Convention closer to the requirements of Regulation (EU) 2019/1239 and the agreed business rules for implementing the latter, namely by making electronic transmission through a single window mandatory, preventing data elements from being repeated, preventing paper forms from being used for the transmission of information, and waiving the requirement for manual signatures.

(11) The Union’s position is to be expressed by the Member States of the Union that are members of the IMO’s Marine Safety Committee and Facilitation Committee, acting jointly.