The CITES 15th Conference of the Parties will take place during Spain’s Presidency. This will be an exceptional opportunity to protect vulnerable sharks and endangered bluefin tuna. CITES provides a worldwide legal framework for regulating and controlling trade of endangered species.
The European Union has presented proposals to list the spurdog (Squalus acanthias) and porbeagle (Lamna nasus) sharks in CITES Appendix II. The severe depletion of these species’ populations in several parts of the world is well documented. Furthermore, both are categorized by the World Conservation Union’s (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, as “Vulnerable” globally, “Endangered” in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean, and “Critically Endangered” in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean.