Fishermen Banned From Fishing In Jersey, France: British Behavior Is Not An Ally

Illustration of a boat in the Jersey waters. (Wikimedia Commons/Man vyi)

JAKARTA - France will decide within two weeks on possible retaliatory measures, after Britain and the Channel Island of Jersey denied permission for dozens of French fishing vessels to operate in their territorial waters.

Paris accused London of playing politics with fishing rights post-Brexit, urging other European Union countries to take the same tough stance against what it called Britain's neglect of new trade relations.

The fishing turmoil came again as Paris was angered by Britain's involvement in a new Indo-Pacific security pact with the United States and Australia (AUKUS), causing Canberra to cancel its purchase of French conventional submarines, switching to nuclear submarines from the United States.

French Maritime Minister Annick Girardin said French fishermen should not be held hostage by Britain for political purposes and said retaliation could involve energy supplies, educational exchanges, trade flows and rail links.

"On every subject, the UK is dragging their feet or failing to live up to their commitments," Girardin told reporters after meeting fishermen in Paris on Wednesday, citing Reuters September 30.

Fishing and control of British waters were hot topics during Britain's 2016 referendum to leave the European Union (Brexit). However, British fishermen have since accused the government of selling them off by allowing European vessels to continue fishing in them.

Britain says it has granted permits to nearly 1,700 vessels to fish in the 12-200 nautical mile zone. Meanwhile, another 105 permits were issued for fishing vessels in the 6-12 nautical mile zone.

Britain said it was open to further discussions with the vessels it had turned down, adding it had not submitted historical evidence of their operations in the waters needed to resume fishing in the 6-12 nautical mile zone.

Jersey Authority, the British Crown Dependent, which is closer to France than the UK, said it issued 64 full permits and 31 temporary permits on 47 vessels already licensed earlier this year but had rejected applications by 75 fishing vessels. However, French fishermen say this is not enough.

"We are giving everything we can to prove (past activity in the area). This is nothing but a matter of bad faith," said Romain Davodet, who fishes for lobster and fish off the coast of Jersey, but only received a temporary license.

The dispute has been going on for months. Paris threatened to cut off electricity supply to Jersey earlier this year. Both Britain and France deployed maritime patrol boats to Jersey waters in May, after a fleet of French trawlers sailed in protest to the Channel Island.

Patience in Paris has run out over what French officials have called Britain's failure to honor its word since Brexit, particularly London's request to renegotiate the agreed Northern Ireland protocol, after months of tortuous talks aimed at preserving the integrity of the Union's single market. Europe.

"We heard (British Prime Minister Boris Johnson) repeat how much he loves France and how great he thinks of us. But the fact is, Britain's behavior is not an ally," said one of President Emmanuel Macron's advisers.