TALLINN – The committee of the Paris Memorandum of Understanding (Paris MoU) at its 55th sitting approved the results of the 2021 inspections as well as the new tables for flag states in which Estonia once more has a place among the white list.

Estonia was on the white list of Paris MoU from 2007 to 2021 after which the flag for Estonia declined to grey or medium level, due to a drop in the number of inspections as a result of the coronavirus, according to the Estonian Transport Administration

The Paris MoU lists are drawn up annually and are valid from July 1. The lists are based on the total number of inspections and detentions over a three-year rolling period for flags with at least 30 inspections in the period. Using the number of inspections, the thresholds for detentions are calculated and if the flag state exceeds a certain threshold, it is placed in the corresponding list.

The black list consists of flag states the vessels of which are detained in foreign ports most often, whereas on the white list are the states with the smallest share of vessels detained.

Paris MoU has 27 member states and its activities are based on the 1982 Paris Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control. The objective of the organization is to improve maritime safety, prevent pollution and ensure decent living and working conditions aboard ships.

The participating states must ensure that foreign-flagged ships are inspected in accordance with uniform principles in order to prevent the passage of non-compliant ships in European seas and the North Atlantic.

The organization consists of 27 participating maritime administrations and covers the waters of the European coastal states and the North Atlantic basin from North America to Europe. The headquarters of Paris MoU is situated in The Hague in the Netherlands. Estonia has been a permanent member of the organization from 2005.