This week, in Brussels, took place the meeting of Maritime Directors of the 27 Member States with the European Commission to discuss current issues related to maritime transport and maritime safety, with the presence of José Carlos Simão, Director General of DGRM.

The meeting was promoted by DG MOVE and brought together the various European Maritime Administrations to discuss the main issues related to shipping and future interactions with the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

The discussion of the future new mandate of the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) and the new challenges that this Agency will face in the future, motivated a constructive brainstorming session between the Member States. The evolution of Maritime Security, the new Protection risks, Decarbonization and Digitization were at the center of this discussion.

The situation of the war in Ukraine and the impact on maritime transport were also presented and analyzed.

Finally, and among other matters, the preparation of the next interactions with the IMO deserved increased attention. As foreseen, this international regulator will carry out a review of the Initial Strategy for Combating Greenhouse Gases in Shipping, which should motivate a reassessment of the intermediate levels of reduction ambition by 2050. This is a matter of the utmost importance for the which the European Union plays a very important role in influencing the adoption of the most ambitious European goals by the rest of the world. The fact that the European Union owns more than 30% of the world's fleet and since it is an international and competitive activity, recommends an approach in order to guarantee a global symmetry of requirements to be applied to ships, in order to avoid distorted competition.