9.3.2002 Official Journal of the European Communities L 67/31 DIRECTIVE 2002/6/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 18 February 2002 on reporting formalities for ships arriving in and/or departing from ports of the Member States of the Community (Text with EEA relevance) THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE (7)  Consequently, it is opportune to introduce the recogni- EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 80(2) thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the Commission ('), Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee (%), Having consulted the Committee of the Regions, Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251 of the Treaty (%), Whereas: (1)  The Community has an established policy to encourage sustainable transport, such as shipping, and, in partic- ular, to promote short sea shipping. (2)  Facilitation of maritime transport is an essential objec- tive for the Community to further strengthen the posi- tion of shipping in the transport system as an alternative and complement to other transport modes in a door-to- door transport chain. (3)  The documentary procedures required in maritime trans- port have caused concern and have been considered to hamper the development of the mode to its full poten- tial. (4)  The International Maritime Organisation's Convention on Facilitation of International Maritime Traffic adopted by the International Conference on Facilitation of Mari- time Travel and Transport on 9 April 1965, as subse- quently amended (hereinafter ‘the IMO FAL Conven- tion’), has provided a set of models for standardised facilitation forms for ships to fulfil certain reporting formalities when they arrive in or depart from a port. (5 Most Member States use these facilitation forms but do not apply the models provided under the auspices of the IMO in a uniform manner. (6)  Uniformity in the format of the forms required for a ship arriving in and departing from a port should facili- tate the documentary procedures for port calls and be beneficial to the development of Community shipping. () O] C 180 E, 26.6.2001, p. 85. () O C 221, 7.8.2001, p. 149. (*) Opinion of the European Parliament of 25 October 2001 (not yet published in the Official Journal) and Council Decision of 7 December 2002. tion of the IMO facilitation forms (hereinafter IMO FAL forms) at Community level. The Member States should recognise the IMO FAL forms and the categories of information in them as sufficient proof that a ship has fulfilled the reporting formalities these forms are intended for. (8) However, the recognition of certain IMO FAL forms, in particular the cargo declaration and - for passenger ships — the passenger list, would add to the complexity of reporting formalities either because those forms cannot contain all necessary information or because well-established facilitation practices already exist. Consequently, obligatory recognition of those forms should not be introduced. (9 Maritime transport is a global activity and the introduc- tion of the IMO FAL forms in the Community could pave the way towards their intensified application around the world. (10)  Since the objectives of the proposed action, namely to facilitate maritime transport, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States and can therefore, by reason of the scale or effects of the action, be better achieved at Community level, the Community may adopt measures in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty. In accordance with the principle of proportionality, as set out in that Article, this Directive does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve those objectives. (11)  The measures necessary for the implementation of this Directive should be adopted in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission (%), HAVE ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE: Article 1 Purpose The purpose of this Directive is to facilitate maritime transport by providing for standardisation of reporting formalities. () O] L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23.