Morocco, Russia poised to sign technical cooperation accord on fisheries

Russia and Morocco are about to finalize a protocol of agreement on technical cooperation in matters of fisheries, that is to be signed shortly, reported Thursday Russian business daily Kommersant.

The daily said the two sides finally decided to promote their technical cooperation, two years after the bilateral fishery agreement expired in 1999. Since that date, the daily recalled, Morocco refused to extend the said accord despite the repeated requests made by Russia, as Russian trawlers wish to operate off the Atlantic.

The daily pointed out that Morocco, which justified its firm stand by the depletion of its sea resources, mainly sardines, is about to adopt a new fishery development strategy, that will define, inter alia, the legal conditions to be fulfilled by maritime companies to be authorized to fish in Moroccan grounds.

Quoting Russian sources, the daily said the two sides might have agreed, during the visit Moroccan foreign minister paid to Russia earlier this week, to sign the protocol of agreement shortly.