Port and Maritime Security after 9/11

摘要

After the attacks of 11 September 2001, a start was made - mainly on the initiative of the USA - to lay the basis for a new security regime for the maritime sector: ports and shipping. Agreement was reached on uniform international regulations during a diplomatic conference of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) in December 2002. An existing IMO convention (Safety of Life at Sea/SOLAS) was modified and expanded with a new International Ship and Port Facility Security Code (ISPS Code). The convention was signed by more than 100 countries, including the Netherlands, and comes into effect on 1 July 2004. The European Union has adopted the changes in the SOLAS convention and the new ISPS Code by means of a European Parliament and Council regulation, and in some areas goes even further. A number of recommendations from the ISPS Code are mandatory for the member states. The EU regulation for 'improving the security of ships and port facilities' came into effect at the beginning of October this year.