On 16 and 31 May respectively the Ambassadors to the European Union of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria and the Principality of Monaco signed on behalf of their respective countries the MedFish4Ever Declaration.

Save the date: 12-13 October 2017 - Tallin, Estonia

On Sunday 14 May, hundreds of EU staff and their families gathered in Ostend, on the Belgian coast, for the first major beach clean-up organised by the European Commission to raise awareness about marine litter ahead of the international Our Ocean conference in October. EU embassies around the world will host similar events during 2017, while actions also took place yesterday in Tanzania, Mauritania, Slovenia, Spain, Poland and Italy.

EU Commissioner for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Karmenu Vella will be at the Council in Brussels on Thursday 11 May to discuss with European Agriculture and Fisheries Ministers the proposal on the conservation of fishery resources and the protection of marine ecosystems through technical measures.

Marine pollution is one of the key topics of the Our Ocean Conference. Every year millions of tons of litter end up in the ocean. It is estimated that by 2050 our seas could contain more plastic than fish. Aquaria are ideal partners to showcase this growing problem and to engage thousands of people, by presenting practical solutions.

Following months of negotiations, the European Commission has secured today a 10-year pledge to save the Mediterranean fish stocks and protect the region's ecological and economic wealth.

Commissioner Karmenu Vella, responsible for Environment, Maritime affairs and Fisheries visited the Joint Research Centre, the European Commission's in-house scientific body, in Ispra, Italy this week.

The European Union participated in the fourth round of international negotiations seeking binding measures to prevent unregulated fisheries in the Arctic high seas. The meeting took place between 15 and 18 March 2017 in Reykjavik, Iceland.