Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans of the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea and Contiguous Atlantic Area (24 Nov 1996) in United States

Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans of the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea and Contiguous Atlantic Area (24 Nov 1996)

The Parties,

Recalling that the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of
Wild Animals, 1979, encourages international co-operative action to conserve
migratory species;

Recalling further that the third meeting of the Conference of the Parties to
the Convention, held in Geneva in September 1991, urged Range States to
collaborate with a view to concluding, under the Convention’s auspices, a
multilateral agreement for the conservation of small cetaceans of the
Mediterranean and Black Seas;

Recognizing that cetaceans are an integral part of the marine ecosystem which
must be conserved for the benefit of present and future generations, and that

their conservation is a common concern;

Recognizing the importance of integrating actions to conserve cetaceans with
activities related to the socio-economic development of the Parties concerned by
this Agreement, including maritime activities such as fishing and the free
circulation of vessels in accordance with international law;

Aware that the conservation status of cetaceans can be adversely affected by
factors such as degradation and disturbance of their habitats, pollution,
reduction of food resources, use and abandonment of non-selective fishing gear,
and by deliberate and incidental catches;

Convinced that the vulnerability of cetaceans to such threats warrants the
implementation of specific conservation measures, where they do not already
exist, by States or regional economic integration organizations that exercise
sovereignty and/or jurisdiction over any part of their range, and by States,
flag vessels of which are engaged outside national jurisdictional limits in
activities that may affect the conservation of cetaceans;

Stressing the need to promote and facilitate co-operation among States,
regional economic integration organizations, intergovernmental organizations and
the non governmental sector for the conservation of cetaceans of the Black Sea,
Mediterranean Sea, the waters which interconnect these seas, and the contiguous
Atlantic area;

Convinced that the conclusion of a multilateral agreement and its
implementation through co-ordinated, concerted actions will contribute
significantly to the conservation of cetaceans and their habitats in the most
efficient manner, and will have ancillary benefits for other species;

Acknowledging that, despite past or ongoing scientific research, knowledge of
the biology, ecology, and population dynamics of cetaceans is deficient, and
that it is necessary to develop co-operation for research and monitoring of
these species in order to fully implement conservation measures;

Acknowledging further that effective implementation of such an agreement will
require that assistance be provided, in a spirit of solidarity, to some Range
States for research, training, and monitoring of cetaceans and their habitats,
as well as for the establishment or improvement of scientific and administrative
institutions;

Recognizing the importance of other global and regional instruments of
relevance to the conservation of cetaceans, signed by many Parties, such as the
International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling, 1946; the Convention for
the Protection of the Mediterranean Sea against Pollution, 1976, its related
protocols and the Action Plan for the Conservation of Cetaceans in the
Mediterranean Sea adopted under its auspices in 1991; the Convention on the
Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats, 1979; the United Nations
Convention on the Law of the Sea, 1982; the Convention on Biological Diversity,
1992; the Convention for the Protection of the Black Sea against Pollution,
1992; and the Global Plan of Action for the Conservation, Management and
Utilization of Marine Mammals of the United Nations Environment Programme,
adopted in 1984; as well as initiatives of inter alia the General Fisheries
Council for Mediterranean, the International Commission for Scientific
Exploration of the Mediterranean, and the International Commission for the

Conservation of Atlantic Tunas,

Have agreed as follows:

Article I
Scope, Definitions and Interpretation

1. a) The geographic scope of this Agreement, hereinafter referred to as the
“Agreement area”, is constituted by all the maritime waters of the Black Sea and
the Mediterranean and their gulfs and seas, and the internal waters connected to
or interconnecting these maritime waters, and of the Atlantic area contiguous to
the Mediterranean Sea west of the Straits of Gibraltar. For the purpose of this
Agreement:

– the Black Sea is bounded to the southwest by the line joining Capes Kelaga and
Dalyan (Turkey);

– the Mediterranean Sea is bounded to the east by the southern limits of the
Straits of the Dardanelles between the lighthouses of Mehmetcik and Kumkale
(Turkey) and to the west by the meridian passing through Cape Spartel
lighthouse, at the entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar; and

– the contiguous Atlantic area west of the Strait of Gibraltar is bounded to the
east by the meridian passing through Cape Spartel lighthouse and to the west by
the line joining the lighthouses of Cape St. Vicente (Portugal) and Casablanca
(Morocco).

b) Nothing in this Agreement nor any act adopted on the basis of this Agreement
shall prejudice the rights and obligations, the present and future claims or
legal views of any State relating to the law of the sea or to the Montreux
Convention of 20 July 1936 (Convention concernant le regime des detroits), in
particular the nature and the extent of marine areas, the delimitation of marine
areas between States with opposite or adjacent [*784] coasts, freedom of
navigation on the high seas, the right and the modalities of passage through
straits used for international navigation and the right of innocent passage in
territorial seas, as well as the nature and extent of the jurisdiction of the
coastal State, the flag State and the port State.

c) No act or activity undertaken on the basis of this Agreement shall constitute
grounds for claiming, contending or disputing any claim to national sovereignty
or jurisdiction.

2. This Agreement applies to all cetaceans that have a range which lies entirely
or partly within the Agreement area or that accidentally or occasionally
frequent the Agreement area, an indicative list of which is contained in Annex 1
to this Agreement.

3. For the purpose of this Agreement:

a) “Cetaceans” means animals, including individuals, of those species,
subspecies or populations of Odontoceti or Mysticeti;

b) “Convention” means the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals, 1979;

c) “Secretariat of the Convention” means the body established under Article IX
of the Convention;

d) “Agreement secretariat” means the body established under Article III,
paragraph 7, of this Agreement;

e) “Scientific Committee” means the body established under Article III,
paragraph 7, of this Agreement;

f) “Range” means all areas of water that a cetacean inhabits, stays in
temporarily, or crosses at any time on its normal migration route within the
Agreement area.

g) “Range State” means any State that exercises sovereignty and/or jurisdiction
over any part of the range of a cetacean population covered by this Agreement,
or a State, flag vessels of which are engaged in activities in the Agreement
area which may affect the conservation of cetaceans;

h) “Regional economic integration organization” means an organization
constituted by sovereign States which has competence in respect of the
negotiation, conclusion and application of international agreements in matters
covered by this Agreement;

i) “Party” means a Range State or a regional economic integration organization
for which this Agreement is in force;

j) “Subregion”, depending on the particular context, means either the region
comprising the coastal States of Black Sea or the region comprising the coastal
States of the Mediterranean Sea and the contiguous Atlantic area; any reference
in the Agreement to the States of a particular subregion shall be taken to mean
the States which have any part of their territorial waters within that
subregion, and States, flag vessels of which are engaged in activities which may
affect the conservation of cetaceans in that subregion; and

k) “Habitat” means any area in the range of cetaceans where they are temporarily
or permanently resident, in particular, feeding areas, calving or breeding
grounds, and migration routes.

In addition, the terms defined in Article I, subparagraphs 1 a) to e), and i) of
the Convention shall have the same meaning, mutatis mutandis, in this Agreement.

4. This Agreement is an agreement within the meaning of Article IV, paragraph 4,
of the Convention.

5. The annexes to this Agreement form an integral part thereof, and any
reference to the Agreement includes a reference to its annexes.

Article II
Purpose and Conservation Measures
1. Parties shall take co-ordinated measures to achieve and maintain a favourable
conservation status for cetaceans. To this end, Parties shall prohibit and take
all necessary measures to eliminate, where this is not already done, any
deliberate taking of cetaceans and shall cooperate to create and maintain a
network of specially protected areas to conserve cetaceans.

2. Any Party may grant an exception to the prohibition set out in the preceding
paragraph only in emergency situations as provided for in Annex 2, paragraph 6,
or, after having obtained the advice of the Scientific Committee, for the
purpose of non-lethal in situ research aimed at maintaining a favourable
conservation status for cetaceans. The Party concerned shall immediately inform
the Bureau and the Scientific Committee, through the Agreement secretariat, of
any such exception that has been granted. The Agreement secretariat shall inform
all Parties of the exception without delay by the most appropriate means.

3. In addition, Parties shall apply, within the limits of their sovereignty
and/or jurisdiction and in accordance with their international obligations, the
conservation, research and management measures prescribed in Annex 2 to this
Agreement, which shall address the following matters:

a) adoption and enforcement of national legislation;

b) assessment and management of human-cetacean interactions;

c) habitat protection;

d) research and monitoring;

e) capacity building, collection and dissemination of information, training and
education; and

f) responses to emergency situations.

Measures concerning fisheries activities shall be applied in all waters under
their sovereignty and/or jurisdiction and outside these waters in respect of any
vessel under their flag or registered within their territory.

4. In implementing the measures prescribed above, the Parties shall apply the
precautionary principle.

Article III
Meeting of the Parties

1. The Meeting of the Parties shall be the decision-making body of this
Agreement.

2. The Depositary shall convene, in consultation with the Secretariat of the
Convention, a session of the Meeting of the Parties to this Agreement not later
than one year after the date of its entry into force. Thereafter, the Agreement
secretariat shall convene, in consultation with the Secretariat of the
Convention, ordinary sessions of the Meeting of the Parties at intervals of not
more than three years, unless the Meeting of the Parties decides otherwise.

3. The Agreement secretariat shall convene an extraordinary session of the
Meeting of the Parties on the written request of at least two thirds of the
Parties.

4. The United Nations, its Specialized Agencies, the International Atomic Energy
Agency, any State not a Party to this Agreement, secretariats of other global
and regional conventions or agreements concerned inter alia with the
conservation of cetaceans, and regional or subregional fisheries management
organizations with competence for species found temporarily or permanently
resident in the Agreement area may be represented by observers in sessions of
the Meeting of the Parties. Any other agency or body technically qualified in
the conservation of cetaceans may be represented at sessions of the Meeting of
the Parties by observers, unless at least one third of the Parties present
object. Once admitted to a session of the Meeting of the Parties, an observer
shall continue to be entitled to participate in future sessions unless one third
of the Parties object at least thirty days before the start of the session.

5. Only Parties have the right to vote. Each Party shall have one vote. Regional
economic integration organizations which are Parties to this Agreement shall
exercise, in matters within their competence, their right to vote with a number
of votes equal to the number of their member States which are Parties to the
Agreement. A regional economic integration organization shall not exercise its
right to vote if its member States exercise theirs and vice versa.

6. All decisions of the Meeting of the Parties shall be adopted by consensus
except as otherwise provided in Article X of this Agreement. However, if
consensus cannot be achieved in respect of matters covered by the annexes to the
Agreement, a decision may be adopted by a two thirds majority of the Parties
present and voting. In the event of a vote, any Party may, within one hundred
and fifty days, notify the Depositary in writing of its intention not to apply
the said decision.

7. At its first session, the Meeting of the Parties shall:

a) adopt its rules of procedure;

b) establish an Agreement secretariat to perform the secretariat functions
listed in Article IV of this Agreement;

c) designate in each subregion, within an existing institution, a Co-ordination
unit to facilitate implementation of the measures prescribed in Annex 2 to this
Agreement;

d) elect a Bureau as provided for in Article VI;

e) establish a Scientific Committee, as provided for in Article VII; and

f) decide on the format and content of Party reports on the implementation of
the Agreement, as provided for in Article VIII.

8. At each of its ordinary sessions, the Meeting of the Parties shall:

a) review scientific assessments of the conservation status of cetaceans of the
Agreement area and the habitats which are important to their survival, as well
as the factors which may affect them unfavourably;

b) review the progress made and any difficulties encountered in the
implementation of this Agreement on the basis of the reports of the Parties and
of the Agreement secretariat;

c) make recommendations to the Parties as it deems necessary or appropriate and
adopt specific actions to improve the effectiveness of this Agreement;

d) examine and decide upon any proposals to amend, as may be necessary, this
Agreement;

e) adopt a budget for the next financial period and decide upon any matters
relating to the financial arrangements for this Agreement;

f) review the arrangements for the Agreement secretariat, the Co-ordination
units and the Scientific Committee;

g) adopt a report for communication to the Parties to this Agreement and to the
Conference of the Parties of the Convention;

h) agree on the provisional time and venue of the next meeting; and

i) deal with any other matter relating to implementation of this Agreement.

Article IV
Agreement Secretariat

1. Subject to the approval of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention,
an Agreement secretariat shall be established within the Secretariat of the
Convention. If the Secretariat of the Convention is unable, at any time, to
provide this function, the Meeting of the Parties shall make alternative
arrangements.

2. The functions of the Agreement secretariat shall be:

a) to arrange and service the sessions of the Meeting of the Parties;

b) to liaise with and facilitate co-operation between Parties and non-Party
Range States, and international and national bodies whose activities are
directly or indirectly relevant to the conservation of cetaceans in the
Agreement area;

c) to assist the Parties in the implementation of this Agreement, ensuring
coherence between the subregions and with measures adopted pursuant to other
international instruments in force;

d) to execute decisions addressed to it by the Meeting of the Parties;

e) to invite the attention of the Meeting of the Parties to any matter
pertaining to this Agreement;

f) to provide to each ordinary session of the Meeting of the Parties a report on
the work of the Agreement secretariat, the Co-ordination units, the Bureau,
and the Scientific Committee, and on the implementation of the Agreement based
on information provided by the Parties and other sources;

g) to administer the budget for this Agreement;

h) to provide information to the general public concerning this Agreement and
its objectives; and

i) to perform any other function entrusted to it under this Agreement or by the
Meeting of the Parties.

3. The Agreement secretariat, in consultation with the Scientific Committee and
the Co-ordination units, shall facilitate the preparation of guidelines covering
inter alia:

a) the reduction or elimination, as far as possible and for the purposes of this
Agreement, of adverse human-cetacean interactions;

b) habitat protection and natural resource management methods as they relate to
cetaceans;

c) emergency measures; and

d) rescue methods.

Article V
Co-ordination Units

1. The functions of the subregional Co-ordination units shall be:

a) to facilitate implementation in the respective subregions of the activities
provided for in Annex 2 to this Agreement, in accordance with instructions of
the Meeting of the Parties;

b) to collect and evaluate information that will further the objectives and
implementation of the Agreement and provide for appropriate dissemination of
such information; and

c) to service meetings of the Scientific Committee and to prepare a report for
communication to the Meeting of the Parties through the Agreement secretariat.

The designation of the Co-ordination units and their functions shall be
reviewed, as appropriate, at each session of the Meeting of the Parties.

2. Each Co-ordination unit, in consultation with the Scientific Committee and
the Agreement secretariat, shall facilitate the preparation of a series of
international reviews or publications, to be updated regularly, including:

a) reports on the status and trends of populations, as well as gaps in
scientific knowledge;

b) a subregional directory of important areas for cetaceans; and c) a subregional directory of national authorities, research and rescue centres,
scientists and non-governmental organizations concerned with cetaceans.

Article VI
Bureau

1. The Meeting of the Parties shall elect a Bureau consisting of the Chairperson
and Vice-Chairpersons of the Meeting of the Parties, and shall adopt rules of
procedure for the Bureau, as proposed by the Agreement secretariat. The
Chairperson of the Scientific Committee shall be invited to participate as an
observer in the meetings of the Bureau. Whenever necessary, the Agreement
secretariat shall provide secretariat services.

2. The Bureau shall:

a) provide general policy guidance and operational and financial direction to
the Agreement secretariat and the Co-ordination units concerning the
implementation and promotion of the Agreement;

b) carry out, between sessions of the Meeting of the Parties, such interim
activities on its behalf as may be necessary or assigned to it by the Meeting of
the Parties; and

c) represent the Parties vis-a-vis the Government(s) of the host
country (or countries) of the Agreement secretariat and the Meeting of the
Parties, the Depositary and other international organizations on matters
relating to this Agreement and its secretariat.

3. At the request of its Chairperson, the Bureau shall normally meet once per
annum at the invitation of the Agreement secretariat, which shall inform all
Parties of the date, venue and agenda of such meetings.

4. The Bureau shall provide a report on its activities for each session of the
Meeting of the Parties which will be circulated to all Parties in advance of the
session by the Agreement secretariat.

Article VII
Scientific Committee

1. A Scientific Committee, comprising persons qualified as experts in cetacean
conservation science, shall be established as an advisory body to the Meeting of
the Parties. The Meeting of the Parties will entrust the functions of the
Scientific Committee to an existing organization in the Agreement area that
assures geographically-balanced representation.

2. Meetings of the Scientific Committee shall be convened by the Agreement
secretariat at the request of the Meeting of the Parties.

3. The Scientific Committee shall:

a) provide advice to the Meeting of the Parties on scientific and technical
matters having a bearing on the implementation of the Agreement, and to
individual Parties between sessions, as appropriate, through the Co-ordination
unit of the subregion concerned;

b) advise on the guidelines as provided for in Article IV, paragraph 3, assess
the reviews prepared in accordance with Annex 2 to this Agreement and formulate
recommendations to the Meeting of the Parties relating to their development,
contents and implementation;

c) conduct scientific assessments of the conservation status of cetacean
populations;

d) advise on the development and co-ordination of international research and
monitoring programmes, and make recommendations to the Meeting of the Parties
concerning further research to be carried out;

e) facilitate the exchange of scientific information and of conservation
techniques;

f) prepare for each session of the Meeting of the Parties a report of its
activities which shall be submitted to the Agreement secretariat not less than
one hundred and twenty days before the session of the Meeting of the Parties and
circulated forthwith by the Agreement secretariat to all Parties;

g) render timely advice on the exceptions of which it has been informed pursuant
to Article II, paragraph 2; and

h) carry out, as may be necessary, other tasks referred to it by the Meeting of
the Parties.

4. The Scientific Committee, in consultation with the Bureau and the respective
Co-ordination units, may establish working groups as may be necessary to deal
with specific tasks. The Meeting of the Parties shall agree a fixed budget
allocation for this purpose.

Article VIII
Communication and Reporting

Each Party shall:

a) designate a focal point for this Agreement, and shall communicate without
delay the focal point’s name, address and telecommunication numbers to the
Agreement secretariat, for prompt circulation to the other Parties and to the
Co-ordination units; and

b) prepare for each ordinary session of the Meeting of the Parties, beginning
with the second session, a report on its implementation of the Agreement with
particular reference to the conservation measures and scientific research and
monitoring it has undertaken. The format of such reports shall be determined by
the first session of the Meeting of the Parties and reviewed as may be necessary
at any subsequent session. Each report shall be submitted to the Agreement
secretariat not less than one hundred and twenty days before the opening of the
session of the Meeting of the Parties for which it has been prepared, and
copies shall be circulated forthwith to the other Parties by the Agreement
secretariat.

Article IX
Financial Arrangements

1. The scale of contributions to the budget of this Agreement shall be
determined by the Meeting of the Parties at its first session. No regional
economic integration organization shall be required to contribute more than 2.5
per cent of the administrative costs.

2. Decisions relating to the budget and any changes to the scale of
contributions that may be found necessary shall be adopted by the Meeting of the
Parties by consensus.

3. The Meeting of the Parties may establish a supplementary conservation fund
from voluntary contributions of Parties or from any other source in order to
increase the funds available for monitoring, research, training and projects
relating to the conservation of cetaceans.

4. Parties are also encouraged to provide technical and financial
support on a bilateral or multilateral basis to assist Range States which are
developing countries or countries with economies in transition to implement the
provisions of this Agreement.

5. The Agreement secretariat shall undertake periodically a review of potential
mechanisms for providing additional resources, including funds and technical
assistance, for the implementation of this Agreement, and shall report its
findings to the Meeting of the Parties.

Article X
Amendment of the Agreement

1. This Agreement may be amended at any ordinary or extraordinary session of the
Meeting of the Parties.

2. Proposals for amendments to the Agreement may be made by any Party. The text
of any proposed amendment and the reasons for it shall be communicated to the
Agreement secretariat not less than one hundred and fifty days before the
opening of the session. The Agreement secretariat shall transmit copies
forthwith to the Parties. Any comments on the text by the Parties shall be
communicated to the Agreement secretariat not less than sixty days before the
opening of the session. The Secretariat shall communicate to the Parties, as
soon as possible after the last day for submission of comments, all comments
submitted by that day.

3. Any additional annex or any amendment to the Agreement other than an
amendment to its annexes shall be adopted by a two thirds majority of the
Parties present and voting and shall enter into force for those Parties which
have accepted it on the thirtieth day after the date on which two thirds of the
Parties to the Agreement at the date of the adoption of the additional annex or
amendment have deposited their instruments of acceptance with the Depositary.
For any Party that deposits an instrument of acceptance after the date on
which two thirds of the Parties have deposited their instruments of acceptance,
the additional annex or amendment shall enter into force on the thirtieth day
after the date on which it deposits its instrument of acceptance.

4. Any amendment to an annex to the Agreement shall be adopted by a two thirds
majority of the Parties present and voting and shall enter into force for all
Parties on the one hundred and fiftieth day after the date of its adoption by
the Meeting of the Parties, except for Parties that have entered a reservation
in accordance with paragraph 5 of this Article.

5. During the period of one hundred and fifty days provided for in paragraph 4
of this Article, any Party may by written notification to the Depositary enter a
reservation with respect to an amendment to an annex to the Agreement. Such
reservation may be withdrawn by written notification to the Depositary, and
thereupon the amendment shall enter into force for that Party on the thirtieth
day after the date of withdrawal of the reservation.

Article XI
Effect of this Agreement on Legislation and International Conventions

1. The provisions of this Agreement shall not affect the right of any Party to
maintain or adopt more stringent measures for the conservation of cetaceans and
their habitats, nor the rights or obligations of any Party deriving from any
existing treaty, convention or agreement to which it is a party, except where
the exercise of those rights and obligations would threaten the conservation of
cetaceans.

2. Parties shall implement this Agreement consistently with their rights and
obligations arising under the law of the sea.

Article XII
Settlement of Disputes

1. Any dispute which may arise between two or more Parties with respect to the
interpretation or application of the provisions of this Agreement shall be
subject to negotiation between the Parties involved in the dispute, or to
mediation or conciliation by a third party if this is acceptable to the Parties
concerned.

2. If the dispute cannot be resolved in accordance with paragraph 1 of this
Article, the Parties may by mutual consent submit the dispute to arbitration or
judicial settlement. The Parties submitting the dispute shall be bound by the
arbitral or judicial decision.

Article XIII
Signature, Ratification, Acceptance, Approval or Accession

1. This Agreement shall be open for signature by any Range State, whether or not
areas under its jurisdiction lie within the Agreement area, or regional economic
integration organization, at least one member of which is a Range State, either
by:
a) signature without reservation in respect of ratification, acceptance or
approval; or

b) signature with reservation in respect of ratification, acceptance or
approval, followed by ratification, acceptance or approval.

2. This Agreement shall remain open for signature at Monaco until the date of
its entry into force.

3. This Agreement shall be open for accession by any Range State or regional
economic integration organization mentioned in paragraph 1, above, on and after
the date of entry into force of the Agreement.

4. Instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession shall be
deposited with the Depositary.

Article XIV
Entry into Force

1. This Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of the third month
following the date on which at least seven coastal States of the Agreement area
or regional economic integration organizations, comprising at least two from the
subregion of the Black Sea and at least five from the subregion of the
Mediterranean Sea and contiguous Atlantic area, have signed without reservation
in respect of ratification, acceptance or approval, or have deposited their
instruments of ratification, acceptance or approval in accordance with Article
XIII of this Agreement.

2. For any Range State or regional economic integration organization which has:

a) signed without reservation in respect of ratification, acceptance, or
approval;

b) ratified, accepted, or approved; or

c) acceded to

this Agreement after the date on which the number of Range States and regional
economic integration organizations necessary to enable entry into force have
signed it without reservation or have ratified, accepted or approved it, this
Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of the third month following
the signature without reservation, or deposit, by that State or organization, of
its instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession.

Article XV
Reservations

The provisions of this Agreement shall not be subject to general reservations.
However, a specific reservation may be entered by any State in respect of a
specifically delimited part of its internal waters, on signature without
reservation in respect of ratification, acceptance or approval or, as the case
may be, on the deposit of its instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval
or accession. Such a reservation may be withdrawn at any time by the State which
had entered it by notification in writing to the Depositary; the State concerned
shall not be bound by the application of the Agreement to the waters which are
the object of the reservation until thirty days after the date on which the
reservation has been withdrawn.

Article XVI
Denunciation

Any Party may denounce this Agreement at any time by written notification to the
Depositary. The denunciation shall take effect twelve months after the date on
which the Depositary has received the notification.

Article XVII
Depositary

1. The original of this Agreement, in the Arabic, English, French, Russian and
Spanish languages, each version being equally authentic, shall be deposited with
the Government of the Principality of Monaco, which shall be the Depositary. The
Depositary shall transmit certified copies of the Agreement to all States and
regional economic integration organizations referred to in Article XIII,
paragraph 1, of this Agreement, and to the Agreement secretariat after it has
been established.

2. As soon as this Agreement enters into force, a certified copy thereof shall
be transmitted by the Depositary to the Secretariat of the United Nations for
registration and publication in accordance with Article 102 of the Charter of
the United Nations.

3. The Depositary shall inform all States and regional economic integration
organizations that have signed or acceded to the Agreement, and the Agreement
secretariat, of:

a) any signature;

b) any deposit of an instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or
accession;

c) the date of entry into force of this Agreement and of any additional annex as
well as of any amendment to the Agreement or to its annexes;

d) any reservation with respect to an additional annex or an amendment to an
annex;

e) any notification of withdrawal of a reservation; and

f) any notification of denunciation of this Agreement.

The Depositary shall transmit to all States and regional economic integration
organizations that have signed or acceded to this Agreement, and to the
Agreement secretariat, the text of any reservation, any additional annex and any
amendment to the Agreement or to its annexes.In witness whereof the undersigned, being duly authorized to that effect, have
signed this Agreement.

Done at Monaco on the twenty-fourth day of November 1996.

ANNEX 1

INDICATIVE LIST OF CETACEANS OF THE BLACK SEA TO WHICH THIS AGREEMENT APPLIES
PHOCOENIDAE

Phocoena phocoena Harbour porpoise

DELPHINIDAE

Tursiops truncatus Bottlenose dolphin

Delphinus delphis Common dolphin

INDICATIVE LIST OF CETACEANS OF THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA AND THE CONTIGUOUS
ATLANTIC AREA TO WHICH THIS AGREEMENT APPLIES

PHOCOENIDAE

Phocoena phocoena Harbour porpoise

DELPHINIDAE

Steno bredanensis Rough-toothed dolphin

Grampus griseus Risso’s dolphin

Tursiops truncatus Bottlenose dolphin

Stenella coeruleoalba Striped dolphin

Delphinus delphis Short-beaked common dolphin

Pseudorca crassidens False killer whale

Orcinus orca Killer whale

Globicephala melas Long-finned pilot whale

ZIPHIIDAE

Mesoplodon densirostris Blainvile’s beaked whale

Ziphius cavirostris Cuvier’s beaked whale

PHYSETERIDAE

Physeter macrocephalus Sperm whale
OGIIDAE

Kogia simus Dwarf sperm whale

BALAENIDAE

Eubalaena glacialis Northern right whale

BALAENOPTERIDAE

Balaenoptera acutorostrata Minke whale

Balaenoptera borealis Sei whale

Balaenoptera physalus Fin whale

Megaptera novaeangliae Humpback whale

The present Agreement shall also apply to any other cetaceans not already listed
in this annex, but which may frequent the Agreement area accidentally or
occasionally.

ANNEX 2
CONSERVATION PLAN

The Parties shall undertake, to the maximum extent of their economic, technical,
and scientific capacities, the following measures for the conservation of
cetaceans, giving priority to conserving those species or populations identified
by the Scientific Committee as having the least favourable conservation status,
and to undertaking research in areas or for species for which there is a paucity
of data.

1. Adoption and enforcement of national legislation

Parties to this Agreement shall adopt the necessary legislative, regulatory or
administrative measures to give full protection to cetaceans in waters under
their sovereignty and/or jurisdiction and outside these waters in respect of any
vessel under their flag or registered within their territory engaged in
activities which may affect the conservation of cetaceans. To this end, Parties
shall:

a) develop and implement measures to minimize adverse effects of fisheries on
the conservation status of cetaceans. In particular, no vessel shall be allowed
to keep on board, or use for fishing, one or more drift nets whose individual or
total length is more than 2.5 kilometres;

b) introduce or amend regulations with a view to preventing fishing gear from
being discarded or left adrift at sea, and to require the immediate release of
cetaceans caught incidentally in fishing gear in conditions that assure their
survival;

c) require impact assessments to be carried out in order to provide a basis for
either allowing or prohibiting the continuation or the future development of
activities that may affect cetaceans or their habitat in the Agreement area,
including fisheries, offshore exploration and exploitation, nautical sports,
tourism and cetacean-watching, as well as establishing the conditions under
which such activities may be conducted;

d) regulate the discharge at sea of, and adopt within the framework of other
appropriate legal instruments stricter standards for, pollutants believed to
have adverse effects on cetaceans; and

e) endeavour to strengthen or create national institutions with a view to
furthering implementation of the Agreement.

2. Assessment and management of human-cetacean interactions

Parties shall, in co-operation with relevant international organizations,
collect and analyse data on direct and indirect interactions between humans and
cetaceans in relation to inter alia fishing, industrial and touristic
activities, and land-based and maritime pollution. When necessary, Parties shall
take appropriate remedial measures and shall develop guidelines and/or codes of
conduct to regulate or manage such activities.

3. Habitat protection

Parties shall endeavour to establish and manage specially protected areas for
cetaceans corresponding to the areas which serve as habitats of cetaceans and/or
which provide important food resources for them. Such specially protected areas
should be established within the framework of the Convention for the Protection
of the Mediterranean Sea against Pollution, 1976, and its relevant protocol, or
within the framework of other appropriate instruments.

4. Research and monitoring

Parties shall undertake co-ordinated, concerted research on cetaceans and
facilitate the development of new techniques to enhance their conservation.
Parties shall, in particular:

a) monitor the status and trends of species covered by this Agreement,
especially those in poorly known areas, or species for which little data are
available, in order to facilitate the elaboration of conservation measures;

b) co-operate to determine the migration routes and the breeding and feeding
areas of the species covered by the Agreement in order to define areas where
human activities may need to be regulated as a consequence;

c) evaluate the feeding requirements of the species covered by the Agreement and
adapt fishing regulations and techniques accordingly;

d) develop systematic research programmes on dead, stranded, wounded or sick
animals to determine the main interactions with human activities and to identify
present and potential threats; and

e) facilitate the development of passive acoustic techniques to monitor
cetacean populations.
5. Capacity building, collection and dissemination of information, training and
education

Taking into account the differing needs and the developmental stages of the
Range States, Parties shall give priority to capacity building in order to
develop the necessary expertise for the implementation of the Agreement. Parties
shall co-operate to develop common tools for the collection and dissemination of
information about cetaceans and to organize training courses and education
programmes. Such actions shall be conducted in concert at the subregional and
Agreement level, supported by the Agreement secretariat, the Co-ordination units
and the Scientific Committee and carried out in collaboration with competent
international institutions or organizations. The results shall be made available
to all Parties. In particular, Parties shall co-operate to:

a) develop the systems for collecting data on observations, incidental catches,
strandings, epizootics and other phenomena related to cetaceans;

b) prepare lists of national authorities, research and rescue centres,
scientists and non-governmental organizations concerned with cetaceans;

c) prepare a directory of existing protected or managed areas which could
benefit the conservation of cetaceans and of marine areas of potential
importance for the conservation of cetaceans;

d) prepare a directory of national and international legislation concerning
cetaceans;

e) establish, as appropriate, a subregional or regional data bank for the
storage of information collected under paragraphs a) to d) above;

f) prepare a subregional or regional information bulletin on cetacean
conservation activities or contribute to an existing publication serving the
same purpose;

g) prepare information, awareness and identification guides for distribution to
users of the sea;

h) prepare, on the basis of regional knowledge, a synthesis of veterinary
recommendations for the rescue of cetaceans; and

i) develop and implement training programmes on conservation techniques, in
particular, on observation, release, transport and first aid techniques, and
responses to emergency situations.

6. Responses to emergency situations

Parties shall, in co-operation with each other, and whenever possible and
necessary, develop and implement emergency measures for cetaceans covered by
this Agreement when exceptionally unfavourable or endangering conditions occur.
In particular, Parties shall:

a) prepare, in collaboration with competent bodies, emergency plans to be

implemented in case of threats to cetaceans in the Agreement area, such as major
pollution events, important strandings or epizootics; and

b) evaluate capacities necessary for rescue operations for wounded or sick
cetaceans; and

c) prepare a code of conduct governing the function of centres or laboratories
involved in this work.

In the event of an emergency situation requiring the adoption of immediate
measures to avoid deterioration of the conservation status of one or more
cetacean populations, a Party may request the relevant Co-ordination unit to
advise the other Parties concerned, with a view to establishing a mechanism to
give rapid protection to the population identified as being subject to a
particularly adverse threat.