BRUSSELS, Belgium — Italy presented new proposals Wednesday to break deadlock between European Union nations seeking stringent controls to protect threatened fish stocks and those demanding more leeway for their fishers.

Fishers' federations say the proposals, which include the tightest quotas yet in some E.U. waters, will put them out of business. Environmentalist counter that the restrictions are needed to prevent the extinction of cod and other dinnertime favorites around Europe.

Italy, which holds the E.U. presidency, proposed compromises at the start of a three-day meeting of E.U. fisheries ministers, where nations such as Spain, Denmark, and Britain sought to cushion the blow for their fishers.

"We need an approach which respects the science and respects the marine environment, but also gives our fishermen opportunities to survive and fish those stocks that are doing well," said British Fisheries Minister Ben Bradshaw.

Spanish Fisheries Minister Miguel Arias Canete said proposed tougher controls on hake — a popular staple in Spain — were "unjustifiable" since it was less at risk than some other species.

He appeared to win over E.U. fisheries regulators who said encouraging stock reports meant they would seek less drastic restrictions on hake.

For cod though, the European Commission is calling for deep cuts.

"The situation for cod is disheartening. A moratorium would be the right instrument but there is no majority for it," said German fisheries minister Renate Kuenast. Together with Sweden, Germany comes out strongest in the defense of fishing restrictions.

The annual negotiations on fish protection come against a background of protests. Danish fishers handed out free fish in the streets of Copenhagen to protest Wednesday. Last week their French counterparts blocked ports across France.

Meanwhile, scientists and environmentalists insist on a total catch ban in some waters to assure the survival of key species.

"Ministers must face ... reality and stop making short-term compromises that condemn fish stocks to further decline," said Patricia McKenna, an Irish Green Party member of the European Parliament.

"It has been their political cowardice over many years that has led directly to the current crisis."

Stocks of cod have sunk to historic lows and are near commercial extinction in many waters despite deep cuts in the fishing fleet and stringent catch quotas.

The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea said cod stocks in the North Sea, Irish Sea, and west of Scotland are so low they want an outright ban.

Instead, the E.U. Commission is calling for cuts of up to 65 percent, which come on top of years of increasingly smaller quotas.

Over the past five years, quotas to catch cod in the North Sea have declined by 66.8 percent, whiting in the Irish Sea sank by 80 percent and sole in Skagerrak by 42.9 percent.