On June 7, the Commissioner will visit the Royal Greenlands processing plant in Ilulissat and she will have a boat tour with an inspection ship on Disko Bay, where an ice fjord is enlisted as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
On June 8, Ms Damanaki will visit Nuuk, the capital of Greenland. In Nuuk, she will have a meeting with Greenland Fisheries and Licence Control organisation. Commissioner Damanaki will also discuss with the Premier Minister Mr Kuupik Kleist and the Minister for Fisheries and Hunting Ane Hansen EU-Greenland cooperation and agreements regarding the protection of Greenland's environment so that it goes hand in hand with the diversification of its economy.
The two parties' close co-operation in fisheries has recently been underlined through the successful completion of negotiations for a new Fisheries Protocol that will enter into force next year. This agreement is to the mutual advantage of both the EU and Greenland.
Stronger cooperation with Greenland would also allow for the EU to deepen the partnership regarding the Arctic region, to support research, boost economic development and combat global warming in the most effective way: Ms Damanaki will visit the Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, which issues the biological advice on fish and sea mammals and she will have a meeting with Inuit Circumpolar Conference on how climate change influences the challenges and possibilities for Inuit Communities in the Arctic.
European Commissioner to Visit Greenland
GREENLAND - Greenland and the EU share mutual concerns, both of a global nature, such as climate change, ageing society and the financial crisis, and specifically related to the Arctic and the opportunities and challenges that the region poses. Against this background, the European Commissioner for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Maria Damanaki will visit Greenland between 7 & 9 June, 2012.
by Lucy Towers
