Russia could tear up 1956 fishing agreement with UK

The Russian government has backed a plan to ban British fishermen from operating in the Barents Sea, one of the key fishing grounds for cod and haddock in the world, TASS reported on Thursday.

Earlier in the day, the newspaper Izvestia reported that the country's Foreign Affairs and Agriculture ministries had submitted draft legislation that could put an end to an agreement signed between the USSR and the UK in 1956.

The so-called ‘Fisheries Agreement’ had allowed British ships to fish in the Barents Sea off the north coast of the Kola Peninsula. It was initially signed for a period of five years and henceforth automatically renewed every five years since neither party ever withdrew from the agreement.

The cabinet subsequently approved the draft law, the Russian government’s press service confirmed to TASS. The legislation will still need to gain the approval of the parliament and President Vladimir Putin before it becomes law.

“The dissolution of the agreement will not cause serious foreign policy and economic consequences for the Russian Federation,” Izvestia quoted government documents as saying.

The documents reportedly indicated that the move is in response to the UK's decision to deprive Russia of ‘most favored nation’ trade status in March 2022. Back then, Britain also imposed import tariffs on hundreds of Russian products.

According to a Sky News report last year, up to 40% of cod and haddock consumed in the UK comes from Russia.

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