Rabat – Russia is active Work When renewing his maritime fishing contract with Morocco, which lasted after four years last December. Moscow strives for his fishing fleet to pick up the operations in front of Morocco coast, especially on sardines, sardinella, mackerel and anchovies.
“We have submitted a command order to the government to sign a new agreement with the Moroccan team for four years and with the option of an extension for another four years,” said Ilya Shestakov, head of Russia’s Fisheries Agency.
Shestakov, who announced that all questions in connection with the agreement have already been discussed, said that the agreement will catch 80,000 tons of fish in Morocco in the exclusive Morocco Economic Zone after completion.
Reports confirmed These conversations are still ongoing, but no decision has been made yet. The previous deal, which was signed in 2020, enabled Russia to use 10 specialized fishing vehicles in front of Morocco’s coast. The Russian ships left Moroccan waters at the end of 2024 after the agreement had expired.
While a new agreement with Russia is still possible, the sources found that the discussions have not yet been completed. Industry experts monitor the talks exactly, especially after the end of the agreement between Morocco and the European Union.
An official pointed out The strategic and diplomatic importance of the negotiations for Morocco, which indicates that the current situation requires thorough studies to evaluate the effects, in particular due to the declining national fish stocks, especially the sardines, which are an essential goal for Russia.
In July 2024, the National Fisheries Office reported that marketed products from coastal and craft fishing decreased by 4% and 10% in volume compared to the same period last year.
The report also indicated the alarming decline of some important types of sea such as shellfish, which had dropped by 82%, seatang by 39%, crustaceans by 25%and pelagic fish by 12%.
In addition, the source emphasized the need for Morocco to go out the challenges of the local fish Face on the Russian market, especially with regard to unresolved payment procedures.
Morocco and Russia before extended Your agreement with the fishing cooperation until the end of 2024, which included the waters off the coast of the southern regions.
If they were implanted, the new agreement would be the ninth of its kind because the maritime cooperation between the two countries began in 1992.
Russia also researches the catch options on the African market about the Great African Expedition, which they published in August, to evaluate the resources of the exclusive maritime economic zone of Africa.
“The expedition will provide valuable scientific data on the biological resources of Africa and new opportunities for the Russia’s fishing industry to develop because it expands the export markets and strengthens Russia’s geopolitical position in Africa. said Shestakov at the beginning of last year.
