Proposal for a Council Decision establishing the position to be adopted at the 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)

The 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP 17) of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) will be held in Johannesburg, South Africa, 24 September – 5 October 2016. The aim of CITES is to ensure that international trade in wild animals and plants is not a threat to the survival of the species in the wild. CITES regulates international trade in more than 35,000 plants and animals species which are or might become threatened by such trade. The CITES CoP is the governing body of the Convention, which usually meets every three years.

The European Union became a contracting Party to the Convention in July 2015. The Convention is implemented in the EU through Council Regulation (EC) No 338/97 on the protection of species of wild fauna and flora by regulating trade therein and associated Commission Regulations. In view of Union competence on trade and environment matters and of the effects of decisions taken by the Conference of the Parties on the implementation of Council Regulation (EC) No 338/97, it is necessary to adopt a Union position on proposals submitted to the Conference.

The present document sets out the Commission's proposal for an EU position on items on the agenda of the CoP. This proposal is in line with the EU's ambitious policy for biodiversity protection, for the promotion of sustainable trade and against wildlife trafficking, as reflected notably in the EU biodiversity strategy, the EU "Trade for all" strategy, the EU Common Fisheries Policy, the EU Action Plans against wildlife trafficking and for the conservation and management of sharks and taking account of the EU-funded study "Larger than elephants. Input for an EU strategic approach to wildlife conservation in Africa".

EUR-Lex: COM(2016)437: Follow the progress of this proposal through the decision-making procedure http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/HIS/?uri=COM:2016:437:FIN

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