Russia will bring up three proposals for IMO draft development strategy at IMO Council meeting in December (photo)

The Russian Federation will bring up three proposals for IMO draft development strategy at the meeting of IMO Council scheduled for mid-December 2016, IAA PortNews correspondent cites Vitaly Klyuev, Director of the Department of State Policy for Maritime and River Transport of Russia’s Transport Ministry, who headed Russian delegation at the 18th meeting of the Russian-German Joint Commission on maritime shipping held in Saint-Petersburg.

Vitaly Klyuev said the revised IMO strategy has been under elaboration throughout the recent years. Russia and Germany are among 42 Member States of IMO Council.

“So we have a say in documents adopted by IMO, particularly those of strategic nature”, explained Vitaly Klyuev.

In general, Russia approves the draft document but sees a need to supplement it. First of all, Russia is concerned about the fact that IMO offers no sufficient economic assessment of new requirements or assessment of the new rules’ impact on all aspects of shipping. For example, Ballast Water Management Convention enters into force in September 2016 but it is still not clear how to comply with it, how it will influence the shipping economy and what requirements will be applicable to ballast water systems.

Another example is the implementation of a global sulphur cap of 0.5% m/m in 2020. Sufficiency of such fuel for worldwide shipping has not been estimated yet.

The Russian Federation will propose a wider preliminary assessment of the new regulations as well as their impact assessment.

The second aspect which arouses Russia’s concern is lack of IMO attention to the human factor. 

“We want IMO to say definitely that it is handling the problem and treats it as a separate factor”, said Vitaly Klyuev.

The third proposal of the Russian side relates to assessment of the influence of bureaucratic procedures on the ship crews’ activities.

“There is too much shipboard paperwork which hinders captains’ and crewmembers’ direct work, - said Vitaly Klyuev. – I am conducting my own sociological research and ask all those related to the sea if they can enumerate all the documents required at ships. So far, I have not met a single person in the world able to do it.”

Vitaly Klyuev reminded that IMO had recently approved the Polar Code which added 4 more documents to the list of shipboard papers.

Today, there are proposals that also mean additional documents.

“We would like the strategy state that IMO is striving to decrease the administrative load on the crew”, said Vitaly Klyuev.

Reinhard Klingen, Director-General for Waterways and Shipping, German Federal  Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure, who headed the German delegation, supported all the proposals of the Russian side.

According to him, shipping needs norms and standards but the impact of new regulations has to be assessed comprehensively.