Cyprus, Greece, Malta and Italy signed a joint declaration in Limassol on 9 September to coordinate positions on shipping competitiveness and decarbonisation at EU and IMO level, according to a Cyprus Shipping Deputy Ministry statement.
The four states together account for 75% of the entire EU fleet, Italy’s ambassador to Cyprus Antonella Cavallari said, giving the group substantial weight in European shipping policy discussions.
The declaration was signed by Cyprus Shipping Deputy Minister to the President Marina Hadjimanolis, Greek Minister of Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy Vasilis Kikilias, Malta’s Minister for Sustainable Mobility Chris Bonett and Italian Deputy Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Edoardo Rixi. Hadjimanolis chaired the meeting, with Rixi participating by videoconference.
The four governments committed to closer coordination ahead of EU and IMO discussions, including work on the EU Emissions Trading System and the IMO Net-Zero Framework. They called for “realistic, globally applicable and cost effective measures” for shipping, consumers and businesses, while backing IMO measures intended to maintain a level playing field and cooperation with the European Commission and other EU member states on the competitiveness and resilience of European shipping.
“The four of us together account for 75 per cent of the entire European Union fleet,” Cavallari said. Bonett said: “Modernising, decarbonising, innovation should not come at the cost of businesses and families.”
The declaration also covers safe maritime routes, freedom of navigation, international cooperation and seafarer safety and welfare.
An IMO working group met in London from 1 to 4 September on draft MARPOL Annex VI amendments underpinning the proposed Net-Zero Framework. Further negotiations are scheduled for November ahead of the IMO Marine Environment Protection Committee meeting from 30 November to 3 December.
Shipping has been included in the EU ETS since 2024, with methane and nitrous oxide added from 2026. A targeted revision of the system was proposed on 17 July 2026.
Maritime transport carries around 75% of the EU’s external trade and about 30% of intra-EU freight, while the EU-controlled fleet accounts for more than one-third of global shipping tonnage.
The Limassol gathering was the ninth Cyprus-Greece-Malta maritime cooperation meeting and the first held in a 3+1 format with Italy.