- CITES withdrew its recommendation to temporarily suspend the trade of endangered species to India.
- The U.S., Brazil, Indonesia, Kuwait, and Kenya, said that the recommendation was “premature,” with the U.S. pushing for more lenient language on other compliance measures.
- However, Belgium, E.U., U.K., and Switzerland called for greater due diligence and cautioned against deleting the recommendation.
The Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) withdrew its earlier recommendation to suspend the trade of endangered species to India, after it failed to garner adequate support by Parties at the ongoing CITES meeting in Uzbekistan.
Earlier this month, the CITES Secretariat recommended India halt the import of species threatened with extinction (listed under Appendix I) until it revised its due diligence mechanisms. The recommendation was made after the Secretariat observed inconsistencies in India’s animal imports during a site visit in September.
Without doing so, India ran the risk of importing animals which may have been sourced from the wild and traded as captive-bred, the Secretariat said. Over 40,000 imported animals – including endangered species like cheetahs, chimpanzees, and orangutans – were acquired by Vantara, a private zoo and rescue and rehabilitation centre founded by Anant Ambani of Reliance Industries.
The Secretariat’s visit to India was made on the request of several Party members who had raised concerns about the volume and origin of animals being sent to Vantara.
When the issue came up for discussion at the CITES meeting on November 23, however, most Parties in the Standing Committee hesitated to support the recommendation for temporary trade suspension to India, leading to its withdrawal.
Observers at the meeting said the proceedings were unexpected. “We’re surprised by the amount of support India has received,” said Daniela Freyer, co-founder of the German conservation NGO ProWildlife, who was present during the meeting. “The CITES Secretariat’s recommendation to suspend imports apparently fell victim to political bargaining, ignoring warnings by scientists’ about the threat to wild species.”
“At this stage, several critical questions regarding the origin, transfer conditions, and documentation of Appendix I specimens remain unanswered,” said Meganne Natali, a legal consultant on wildlife crime,“The withdrawal reflects a political preference for caution rather than a technical conclusion that the compliance issues have been resolved. ”
While the recommendation to suspend trade has been withdrawn, India will likely need to comply with the other recommendations made by the Secretariat in its report. These include liasing with countries whose export permits appear questionable to verify their validity, and sufficiently staffing the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau so it is empowered to intervene on intelligence matters to prevent illegal trade.
‘Premature’ to suspend trade
At the meeting, India said calls for a suspension on trade were disproportionate without “any demonstrated non-compliance” by it. India had made written submissions to the Secretariat to the same effect before taking the floor on November 23.
“The mission’s own findings identify numerous situations which require further clarification,” India said in the meeting adding, “In this constructive spirit, India, respectfully, requests the Standing Committee to refrain from adopting any retrospective or punitive action.”
India found support from the U.S., Brazil, Indonesia, Kuwait, and Kenya, among others, who agreed that the recommendation to temporarily suspend trade was “premature.” In addition to calling for the deletion of the recommendation, the U.S. also pushed for more lenient language on other compliance measures, to make it clear that “it’s simply a recommendation.”
According to Natali, some of the reasons cited by states to justify the withdrawal, such as lack of evidence of illegal imports, “are, in fact, the very circumstances in which a precautionary measure is most justified.”
“A precautionary approach is designed for situations where legality cannot yet be confirmed, not only when illegality has already been proven,” she said.
Belgium, the E.U., U.K., and Switzerland fought to retain the recommendation on trade suspension in light of the inconsistencies found by the CITES Secretariat. “We know that this situation appears to be an exceptional case with a high quantity of animals destined for one facility, and we are concerned by the high volume,” Belgium said, adding, “We call on India to explain the differences in data between the national reports and what had been declared during the Secretariat’s mission.”
However, these concerns were eventually overruled.
“We are particularly disappointed by the US government, which has been taking a lead in the past in safeguarding the Convention and its compliance measures, but now insisted in weakening recommendations to India,” said Freyer.
Concerns about trade persist
The withdrawal of the recommendation to suspend trade came amid statements by expert groups of the IUCN, who cautioned against trading animals from range states to ex-situ facilities. The IUCN groups provide technical background and guidance to the CITES.
Observer groups present at the meeting also expressed their support for trade suspensions till India improved its due diligence.
“We would like to express our particular concerns about the dubious acquisition of the 70 great apes imported into India between 2023 and 2025,” said The Pan African Sanctuary Alliance (PASA) in its submission. “Great ape scientists have cautioned that there is no conservation rationale for taking great apes from wild populations for relocating or exporting them to zoos.”
Standard practices of care for trafficked great apes “prioritise placing these individuals in a suitable range state sanctuary,” said PASA, adding that sending them to faraway facilities “defies logic and good welfare practices.”
The European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA), representing the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums, also called for greater due diligence. “The Secretariat’s report raises serious concerns about several transactions involving great apes and big cats from non range countries. We believe it is important that these issues are clarified and that appropriate measures to ensure compliance with the convention are put in place.”
While specific agenda items are likely to touch upon India’s imports, the compliance issue is unlikely to be discussed again for the duration of the meeting, which ends on December 5.
”While it is disappointing that the Standing Committee failed to suspend imports, it has adopted a lot of other recommendations, clearly acknowledging that India hasn’t got its house in order, and they have a lot of tasks to do. Vantara and India will remain under scrutiny by CITES and they need to report back in 2026,” said Freyer.
Read more: Global biodiversity assessment counters Supreme Court’s clean chit to Vantara
With inputs from Spoorthy Raman.
Banner image: An orangutan with offspring in Betung Kerihun National Park, Indonesia. Representative image by Sabar Minsyah via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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