France and the Netherlands have submitted a paper to the IMO Legal Committee regarding two new fraudulent ship registries, one in the Caribbean and the other in an uninhabited island in the South Pacific.
According to the submitted paper, the two identified registries, called “Maritime Administration of Matthew Island” and “MSTA REGISTRY – International Maritime Registries & Regulatory Inc” (posing as the register of Sint Maarten) are fraudulent.
The two nations in their submission have also urged that in order to combat the emergence of unregulated private companies ‘usurping’ the authority of flag State authorities and to assist administrations with limited resources to implement their right to register ships under their flag there should be additional measures taken.
Furthermore, the paper highlighted that in order to prevent fraud, but also simply to allow communication in the event of an inspection or accident, the details of the authorities and/or managers responsible and the method used by the flag State to maintain the register must be made transparent.
Whether the flag administration has decided to entrust it to its administration, or to delegate it to one or more private companies, the contacts should be made accessible and regularly updated. If a private company acts on behalf of a State, it must be clearly established by the Government of the State that it has been given a mandate and that it is acting under its authority and effective control.
Lately, there has been upheaval regarding potential fraudulent ship registries, as in January, twenty one nations made a submission to IMO’s Legal Committee presenting measures to prevent unlawful practices associated with the fraudulent registration and fraudulent registries of ships.
In addition, four Flag States were inducted to the ICS Flag State Performance Table, which are reportedly used by some shipping companies seeking to bypass US/EU/G7 sanctions, leading to concerns as to whether international maritime standards are being properly enforced on board ships flying the flags of these States.
As stated in the submission, countries should also improve their practices to meet international standards, such as the IMO numbering system, which gives ships, companies, and owners unique IDs. These practices help ensure better enforcement of ship safety and security regulations.
