Russia Makes Representation to Norway Ambassador Knut Hauge

PRESS RELEASE

A protest was declared to Norway's ambassador to Moscow, Knut Hauge, at the Russian MFA on September 30, 2011 over the detention of the Russian fishing trawler Sapphire 2 by the Norwegian Coast Guard on September 28, 2011, in the so called fisheries protection zone near the Svalbard archipelago on suspicion of dumping of fish. It was stressed that the Norwegian actions had been unacceptable and provocative. Norwegian inspectors had reportedly removed the crew from control of the ship, seized all the documents and denied access to the radio room and office equipment. In addition, Norwegian Coast Guard representatives had refused to cooperate with the Rosrybolovstvo (Federal Fisheries Agency) officials who were on the Angrapa vessel supervising the fishing activities of Russian ships in the area. The Russian side declared such actions inadmissible because they could lead to an escalation of tensions in the realm of fisheries and demanded immediate release of the ship.

MFA noted that this is not the first time Russian ships have been arrested in the Svalbard area recently and that such practice runs counter to existing political arrangements for preserving favorable conditions for Russian fishing after the entry into force of the Russian-Norwegian Treaty on Maritime Delimitation and Cooperation in the Barents Sea and the Arctic Ocean. MFA stressed that Russia demands observance of Norway's international obligations as well as the norms of international maritime law. Any issues that may arise should be resolved in a spirit of neighborliness, within agreed procedures and mechanisms, including the Joint Russian-Norwegian Fisheries Commission.

September 30, 2011