[Senate Treaty Document 108-2]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
108th Congress Treaty Doc.
SENATE
1st Session 108-2
_______________________________________________________________________
AMENDMENTS TO 1987 TREATY ON FISHERIES WITH PACIFIC ISLAND STATES
__________
MESSAGE
from
THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
transmitting
AMENDMENTS TO THE 1987 TREATY ON FISHERIES BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENTS OF
CERTAIN PACIFIC ISLAND STATES AND THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES
OF AMERICA, WITH ANNEXES AND AGREED STATEMENTS, DONE AT PORT MORESBY,
APRIL 2, 1987 (THE ``TREATY''), DONE AT KOROR, PALAU, MARCH 30, 1999,
AND AT KIRITIMATI, KIRIBATI, MARCH 24, 2002. ALSO TRANSMITTED, RELATED
AMENDMENTS TO THE TREATY ANNEXES, AND THE MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
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February 11, 2003.--Treaty was read the first time, and together with
the accompanying papers, referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
and ordered to be printed for the use of the Senate
LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL
----------
The White House, February 11, 2003.
To the Senate of the United States:
With a view to receiving the advice and consent of the
Senate to ratification, I transmit herewith Amendments to the
1987 Treaty on Fisheries Between the Governments of Certain
Pacific Island States and the Government of the United States
of America, with Annexes and agreed statements, done at Port
Moresby, April 2, 1987 (the ``Treaty''), done at Koror, Palau,
March 30, 1999, and at Kiritimati, Kiribati, March 24, 2002. I
also transmit, for the information of the Senate, the report of
the Secretary of State with respect to these Amendments,
related Amendments to the Treaty Annexes, and the Memorandum of
Understanding regarding provisional application.
The United States enjoys positive and constructive
fisheries relations with the Pacific Island Parties through the
implementation and operation of the Treaty, which is one of the
cornerstones of our overall foreign relations with the Pacific
Island Parties. This Treaty, and the good relationships it has
fostered, has provided new opportunities for collaboration
between the Pacific Island Parties and the United States on
fisheries conservation and management issues. The relationships
established as a result of the Treaty have also helped to
safeguard U.S. commercial and security interests in the region.
The Amendments to the Treaty will, among other things,
allow U.S. longline vessels to fish in high seas portions of
the Treaty Area; streamline the way amendments to the Treaty
Annexes are agreed; and allow the Parties to consider the issue
of capacity in the Treaty Area and, where appropriate, to
promote consistency between the Treaty and the relevant
fisheries management convention, which is likely to come into
force during the duration of the extended operation of the
Treaty.
Existing legislation, including the Magnuson-Stevens
Fishery Conservation and Management Act, 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
and the South Pacific Tuna Act of 1988, Public Law 100-330,
provides sufficient legal authority to implement U.S.
obligations under the Treaty. Therefore, no new legislation is
necessary in order for the United States to ratify these
Amendments. However, minor amendments to section 6 of the South
Pacific Tuna Act of 1988, Public Law 100-330 will be necessary
to take account of the Amendment to paragraph 2 of Article 3
``Access to the Treaty Area,'' which opens the high seas of the
Treaty Area to fishing by U.S. longline vessels.
I recommend that the Senate give favorable consideration to
these Amendments and give its advice and consent to their
ratification at an early date.
George W. Bush.
LETTER OF SUBMITTAL
----------
The Secretary of State,
Washington, December 28, 2002.
The President,
The White House.
The President: I have the honor to submit to you, with a
view to transmission to the Senate for advice and consent to
ratification, Amendments to the 1987 Treaty on Fisheries
Between the Governments of Certain Pacific Island States and
the Government of the United States of America, with annexes,
(``the Treaty''), done at Koror, Palau March 30, 1999 and at
Kiritimati, Kiribati March 24, 2002. The Treaty was ratified by
the United States on December 21, 1987 and it entered into
force on June 15, 1988. The Amendments to the Treaty will,
among other things, allow U.S. longline vessels to fish in
high-seas portions of the Treaty Area; streamline the way
amendments to the Treaty Annexes are agreed; and allow the
Parties to consider the issue of fishing capacity in the Treaty
Area and ways to promote consistency, where appropriate,
between the Treaty and the Convention for the Conservation and
Management of Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the Western and
Central Pacific Ocean (the ``WCPFC Convention''), done at
Honolulu, Hawaii September 4, 2000. The Amendments to the
Treaty Text are briefly described below. Related amendments to
the Treaty Annexes and the Memorandum of Understanding
regarding provisional application are also included for the
information of the Senate.
The United States enjoys positive and constructive
fisheries relations with the Pacific Island Parties through the
implementation and operation of the Treaty. Since it entered
into force in 1988, the Treaty has become the cornerstone of
the economic and political relationship between the United
States and these Pacific Island Parties. This good relationship
on fisheries issues, as well as a common desire to conserve and
manage fisheries resources in the South Pacific, has carried
over into the multilateral effort to establish a conservation
and management regime in the Western and Central Pacific. Under
the Treaty, the U.S. industry pays an annual license fee of $4
million per year--a figure which will be reduced to $3 million
under the Treaty extension, due to a decrease in the number of
vessels to be licensed to fish in the Treaty Area.
To date, the Treaty has provided considerable economic
benefits to the United States. The tuna harvested by U.S.
vessels under the Treaty contributes an estimated $250 to $400
million annually to the U.S. economy. Nearly all of this fish
is landed at the two canneries in American Samoa, one owned by
U.S. interests, which are the territory's largest employers.
Associated with the Treaty is the Economic Assistance
Agreement between the United States and the South Pacific Forum
Fisheries Agency. Under the current terms of the Agreement, the
United States provides $14 million per year in Economic Support
Funds (ESF) to the Pacific Island States to be used solely for
economic stability and security. The payments under the
associated Agreement are now the only significant source of
U.S. economic support for the stability and security of the
region outside the assistance provided to the Freely Associated
States. The strong economic and political relationship with the
Pacific Island States made possible by this Agreement also
helps further U.S. Foreign policy goals through support from
the Pacific Island States in international fora.
The Agreement expires June 14, 2003. To serve U.S.
interests and to maintain the stability of this successful
regime, in conjunction with the amendments to the Treaty and
Annexes, the Agreement will be amended and extended for a term
of 10 years. The United States and the Pacific Island parties
have agreed that for the next term of the Agreement, the annual
level of economic assistance provided by the U.S. Government
under the Economic Assistance Agreement associated with the
Treaty would be $18 million. It is anticipated that the United
States and the South Pacific Forum Fisheries Agency will sign
the new Economic Assistance Agreement in early 2003.
The amendments to the Treaty are non-controversial and are
widely supported by U.S. domestic constituent interests.
The first amendment, which was initially agreed to in 1999,
modifies paragraph 2 of Article 3 ``Access to the Treaty Area''
to allow U.S. longline vessels to fish in high-seas portions of
the area covered by the Treaty. The current Treaty excludes
U.S. fishing vessels other than purse-seine vessels from
operating in the Treaty Area, except for albacore troll vessels
that may operate on the high seas within the Treaty Area. At
the time the Treaty was negotiated in the late 1980s, the
United States did not have a large distant-water longline fleet
in the Pacific Ocean and thus no similar exception was included
for these vessels. However, in recent years, a large U.S.
longline fleet has developed and would like to fish in the
high-seas portion of the Treaty Area. This amendment would
accomplish that goal and is strongly supported by U.S. fishing
interests in Hawaii and elsewhere in the region.
The second amendment adds a new preambular paragraph that
notes with satisfaction the successful conclusion of the WCPFC
Convention which, once in force, will establish the legal
framework and an organization to conserve and manage highly
migratory fish stocks in the same region covered by the Treaty.
The WCPFC Convention will provide for conservation and
management of the fisheries resources in the region, thereby
helping to ensure the long-term sustainability of the resource
for the U.S. tuna purse-seine fleet. The United States actively
participated in negotiation of the WCPFC Convention and signed
it on September 9, 2000. The WCPFC Convention is strongly
supported by the U.S. tuna industry and the environmental
community. Entry into force of the WCPFC Convention for the
United States is dependent on Senate advice and consent to
ratification, and the Department of State is preparing for its
submission to the President for transmittal to the Senate.
The third amendment adds a new paragraph in Article 1
(``Definitions and Interpretation'') defining the term
``Convention'' as referring to the WCPFC Convention.
The fourth amendment adds three new paragraphs to Article 7
(``Review of the Treaty''). The first two amendments (the
addition of new paragraphs 2 and 3) pertain to linkages between
the Treaty and the WCPFC Convention. New paragraph 2 provides
that parties to the Treaty shall, where appropriate, consider
the extent to which adjustments to the Treaty or any measures
adopted pursuant to it may be necessary to promote consistency
with measures adopted under the WCPFC Convention. New paragraph
3 provides that parties to the Treaty may cooperate to address
matters of common concern under the Convention. The U.S. is
supportive of conservation and management of the fish stocks of
this region and pushed hard for an effective WCPFC Convention.
The Convention will likely come into force within the term of
the extended operation of the Treaty. Therefore, these
amendments provide for cooperation and, where appropriate, the
promotion of consistency between the operation of this Treaty
and any management measures to be taken under the WCPFC. They
do so, however, without binding the United States to the
Convention or any future measures adopted thereunder until the
United States becomes a Party to the WCPFC Convention.
The third modification to Article 7 adds a new paragraph 4
providing that the parties to the Treaty shall, where
appropriate, consider the issue of capacity in the Treaty Area.
The issue of ``over-capacity'' of the fishing fleets in the
region is important for the United States and the U.S. tuna
industry, because ``over-capacity'' can undermine management
efforts and affect the economic viability of the fishery for
all participants. The inclusion of a provision on fishing
capacity was a key goal of the United States in these
negotiations.
The fifth and final amendment to the Treaty text concerns
Article 9 (``Amendments to the Annexes''). Article 9 would be
amended in its entirety to provide for a more streamlined and
efficient procedure to amend the annexes of the Treaty. Unlike
the United States, where the Congress has authorized the
Secretary of State to approve amendments to the Annexes on
behalf of the United States Government (South Pacific Tuna Act
of 1988, P.L. 100-330), nearly all of the Pacific Island
Parties to the Treaty must submit any amendments to the Annexes
to their legislative bodies for approval. This reality has
resulted in substantial delays in the entry into force of
important technical amendments to the Annexes desired by the
United States and the U.S. tuna industry. The revisions to
Article 9 would allow amendments to the Annexes to take effect
more quickly. Specifically, any party may propose amendments by
notifying the depositary at least 120 days before the annual
meeting. Amendments will be adopted by consensus. After
adoption, each party is to act expeditiously to accept the
amendment, and parties will, to the extent possible for them,
apply adopted amendments provisionally. This establishes a more
streamlined procedure, while providing time and opportunity for
the United States to undergo our internal procedures to develop
our position on any proposed amendment.
The Amendments to the Treaty text do not have final clauses
detailing their entry into force. Article 8 of the Treaty,
however, provides for the Parties' consideration and adoption
of amendments. Specifically, Article 8(e) provides: ``Any
amendment to this Treaty shall be adopted by the approval of
all the parties, and shall enter into force upon receipt by the
depositary of instruments of ratification, acceptance or
approval by the parties.'' Accordingly, these Amendments will
enter into force once all the Parties to the Treaty have
consented to be bound by them.
Like the Treaty Amendments themselves, the related
Amendments to the Treaty Annexes, which will be concluded as
executive agreements in accordance with the Treaty and P.L.
100-330, also lack final clauses detailing their entry into
force. Article 9 of the Treaty, however, provides for their
entry into force upon the date of notification that all Parties
have accepted the Annex amendments, unless the Parties agree on
a different date. A copy of these amendments is enclosed for
the information of the Senate.
The United States and the Parties also agreed on the text
of a non-legally binding Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that
will have the effect of provisionally applying from June 15,
2003 (1) the Amendments to the Treaty (except for the
amendments to Article 9) agreed in Kiritimati, Kiribati on
March 24, 2002; (2) the Amendments to the Annexes agreed in
Kiritimati, Kiribati on March 24, 2002; (3) the Treaty
Amendment previously agreed in Koror, Palau on March 30, 1999
that opens the high seas of the Treaty Area to U.S. longline
vessels; and (4) two Amendments to the Annexes agreed in Koror,
Palau on March 30, 1999 that close Papua New Guinea's
archipelagic waters and open the waters of the Solomon Islands
to U.S. vessels, if these amendments have not yet been approved
by all Parties by June 15, 2003. This MOU is an important
political commitment that will allow the U.S., among other
things, to ensure that as of June, 2003, U.S. longline vessels
will be able to fish in the high seas portions of the Treaty
Area and that the waters of the Solomon Islands will be open
even if every Party has not yet approved those amendments. Both
of these issues have long been goals for the U.S. industry. A
copy of the Memorandum of Understanding, done at Kiritimati,
Kiribati March 24, 2002, is also enclosed for the information
of the Senate.
Existing legislation, including the Magnuson-Stevens
Fishery Conservation and Management Act, 16 U.S.C. Sec. 1801 et
seq. and the South Pacific Tuna Act of 1988, P.L. 100-330,
provides sufficient legal authority to implement U.S.
obligations under the Treaty. Therefore, no new legislation is
necessary in order for the United States to ratify these
amendments to the Treaty. However, minor amendments to Section
6 of the South Pacific Tuna Act of 1988, P.L. 100-330 will be
necessary to take account of the Amendment to paragraph 2 of
Article 3 ``Access to the Treaty Area.''
The Department of Commerce joins me in supporting
ratification of these Amendments.
Accordingly, I recommend that the Amendments to the Treaty
text be transmitted to the Senate as soon as possible for its
early and favorable advice and consent to ratification.
Respectfully submitted.
Colin L. Powell.
Enclosures: as mentioned.
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