International Trade in Wildlife: European Commission welcomes results of CITES conference, adopts Recommendation on enforcement

The Commission welcomed the successful outcome of the first ever Conference of Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) to take place in the European Union. The 3-15 June 2007 conference in The Hague reached a historic solution on the ivory issue after 18 years of controversial debate. An EU proposal to regulate trade in European eels under CITES was adopted and Parties furthermore acknowledged that trade in timber and marine species needs further attention. In line with the commitments made by the EU, the Commission on 13 June adopted an action plan on CITES enforcement.