Britain Welcomes France's Decision to Delay Sanctions over Fishing Dispute

The British government welcomed today, Tuesday, France's announcement to postpone the implementation of sanctions in the fishing dispute between the two countries.

A British government spokesman said London was ready to continue intensive discussions to settle the dispute.

He added that the British authorities believe that there is a need for in-depth discussions, to overcome difficulties in the relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union.

Yesterday, French President Emmanuel Macron said his government had delayed implementing sanctions on Britain in a fishing dispute until the end of Tuesday, while the two sides discussed new proposals to settle the dispute.

France argues that Britain is not honoring a post-Brexit deal on access to British fisheries. It warned yesterday that it would implement sanctions, including tightening inspection procedures for trucks coming from Britain and preventing British fishing vessels from docking in French ports.

"Discussions resumed yesterday afternoon on the basis of a proposal he made to Prime Minister Boris Johnson. There is a need to continue the talks," Macron told reporters on the sidelines of the United Nations climate conference in Glasgow, Scotland.

Yesterday, Macron has threatened "retaliatory measures" as of today, Tuesday, against Britain unless London changes its position on the fishing dispute.

According to French media, Macron and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson discussed the thorny issue of British licenses granted to French fishermen on Sunday morning, on the sidelines of the G20 summit held in Rome at the end of the week.

After that interview on the sidelines of the summit, the French president called for a mutual  "de-escalation" in the fishing dispute in the coming days. However, Johnson's position was firm, insisting that Paris should withdraw its threats of retaliation against London.

The Elysee, the headquarter of the French presidency,  announced that after the meeting of the two leaders in Rome, "practical and implementation measures will be taken as soon as possible to avoid an escalation of tension. An update will also be issued on Tuesday on the implementation or non-implementation of retaliatory measures by Paris.

Earlier, France threatened retaliatory measures if the number of licenses granted by the British authorities to French fishermen remained insufficient.

Britain considered the French stance a  disappointing and inappropriate threat. It also urged, on Monday, France to reverse its position, and demanded that this retract take place within 48 hours, or else it will face legal action.

London repeated its threat to file a complaint against Paris "for violating the trade agreement between the United Kingdom (UK) and the European Union (EU)," stressing that the Kingdom will take measures if France does not back down.

British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss called on France on Monday to withdraw its "completely unreasonable" threats regarding the dispute between the two countries over fishing licenses and areas.

Last week, Paris announced retaliatory measures against Britain as of Tuesday, including banning British fishermen from entering French ports who usually come to unload their fish there.