Europe must show the same awareness as the US, Canada and other Western countries of the need to maintain sufficient transport capability to meet its cargo trading needs.
Speaking at the European Maritime Law Organization 2017 annual conference in Hamburg, Lavinia Corp chief executive Panos Laskaridis said: “The last thing we want to see is the goods of Europe, or the goods of the Western world, for import or export, one day carried by ships which are built, designed, constructed, manned, controlled and operated by our main trading competitors.
“I think it is in the strongest interest of Europe and the Western world to make sure Europe maintains a large, efficient and transparent working fleet.”
The European Community Shipowners’ Association president-elect said Europe did not take the matter sufficiently seriously.
He focused especially on the necessity of state aid guidelines so that European shipping can compete with owners benefiting from conditions offered by many other maritime centres that started from nothing but have attracted a lot of firms from around the world, including Europe.
On shipowners’ attitude towards European oversight of the industry, Laskaridis said: “If regulations are in our favour, we like them. If they are not in our favour, we don’t like them. How much more honest can one be?”
He added: “We need the regulators but we don’t need over regulation.”
On the issue of emissions, the Greek owner said shipping was a responsible industry and understood that it must contribute “to a better climate”.
It must discharge its responsibility in a “reasonable way but also in a fair, proportional and equitable way. No more and no less.”
