On May 16, 2018, the 99th session of the Maritime Safety Committee of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) began its work in London, UK.

D.S. Zhukov, a senior lecturer of Ship Control Department of NU “OMA” took part in the session on behalf of the International Association of Maritime Universities (IAMU). The 99th session of IMO’s Maritime Safety Committee will take place from May 16 till 25.

About 130 documents were submitted for consideration during the session. The agenda of the session consisted of 22 questions related to maritime safety and environmental protection. This session is held annually for IMO. IMO was established in accordance with the UN resolution 70 years ago, on May 6, 1948.

Mr. Kitack Lim, Secretary General of the International Maritime Organisation opened the meeting by welcoming the participants. In his presentation he referred to the programme of celebration of the IMO’s 70th anniversary and voiced the theme of the World Marine Day: “IMO 70: Our Heritage – Better Shipping for a Better Future.”

Among the agenda’s issues, the issue of Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS) was considered. 13 basic and 6 informational documents were presented for discussion as well. The first day of the session focused on discussions regarding the future of these vessels, the legal basis for such vessels and the long-term coexistence of conventional vessels and MASS ships in the ocean expanses. The suggestion was also made to create a working group and determine the work plan for 2020 on this issue.