REUTER 16/3/1995

STRASBOURG, France The European Parliament condemned Canada on Thursday for seizing a Spanish fishing trawler, but rejected calls to suspend agreements and contacts with Ottawa.

The European Union assembly, voting a day after Canada defused tensions by releasing the trawler Estai, called instead for urgent diplomatic efforts to resolve the fisheries dispute.

It said in a resolution that Canada's seizure of the boat in international waters last week was illegal and called on the EU to defend "law of the sea" principles.

But it vetoed draft language asking the EU to suspend agreements with Canada until it guaranteed that European ships could fish according to international legal provisions.

It also rejected a proposal to cancel meetings scheduled next week in Brussels with Canadian deputies.

Canadian authorities, who seized the Estai a week ago for what they alleged was overfishing, released the trawler from St John's, Newfoundland, on Wednesday after payment of a Canadian $500,000 ($350,000) bond.

The EU and Canada held talks on Thursday in advance of a meeting next week of the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organisation (NAFO) to discuss the fishing dispute.

The parliament said the Estai's crew members had been taken to St John's under unacceptable conditions and that any damage to the trawler would have to be compensated.