Fishing row between France, UK far from over: Minister

By Shweta Desai

PARIS (AA) - Tough negotiations and threats of retaliation have yielded a few additional licenses for French fishers, but their dispute with the UK is far from over, France’s junior minister for European Affairs said Monday.

In an interview with CNews television, Clement Beaune said Britain had issued 23 new licenses on Dec. 11, a day after the deadline set by France to resolve the ongoing fishing dispute.

“Our firmness unblocked the negotiations. We have obtained 93% of the licenses today. We will define with the fishermen the last kilometer of these negotiations,” he said.

Beaune added that the government was still awaiting “a few dozen” licenses and “will not let down any of these fishermen."

The dispute over fishing licenses in UK and Channel Islands waters, part of the post-Brexit trade agreement, has been a point of contention in French-UK relations for most of this year. Paris has repeatedly threatened retaliatory measures if its demands are not met, whereas Britain has maintained that it has delivered the obligatory licenses.

As the altercation appears to drag on longer, French fishers, who are at the center of the storm, have warned of blocking French ports on Dec. 23, similar to the blockades imposed briefly in November. The fishing community said it was disappointed with the granting of 23 licenses and could pursue legal recourse in addition to the blockade, which could disrupt trade during the holiday season.