Russia may close its economic zone to Norwegian fishing vessels in 1 month - Rosrybolovstvo

MOSCOW. Aug 27 (Interfax) - Russia may close its exclusive economic zone to Norwegian vessels in one month if Norway does not revise its position regarding two Russian companies that are prohibited from fishing in the exclusive economic zone of that country, the Federal Fisheries Agency (Rosrybolovstvo) said, citing the head of the agency Ilya Shestakov, who participated in an extraordinary session of the mixed Russian-Norwegian fisheries commission.

"In case the Norwegian side does not revise its position within a month, Russia will close its exclusive economic zone to Norwegian fishing vessels. Furthermore, fishing and the allocation of catch quotas in the open waters of the Barents and Norwegian Seas will be conducted based on Russian national interests," Shestakov said.

According to Rosrybolovstvo, Norway unjustifiably introduced a ban on fishing in its exclusive economic zone for two Russian companies (Norebo and Murman Seafood) in July 2025. "This is a gross violation of existing agreements on the joint management of aquatic biological resources stocks," Rosrybolovstvo said.

"The actions of the Norwegian side will inevitably lead to the destruction of the effective system of management and regulation of fisheries in the North Atlantic, which has been built over many decades and is designed to ensure the long-term rational exploitation of shared stocks of aquatic biological resources," Shestakov said.

The mixed Russian-Norwegian fisheries commission has been operating since 1976. It was created to ensure the careful use of aquatic biological resources in the Barents and Norwegian Seas.

The first warning to the Norwegian side about a possible ban on operations in the Russian exclusive economic zone in response to unfriendly actions was issued at the end of July in an interview by Shestakov with the Rossiya-24 television channel. At the same time, Shestakov did not rule out more serious consequences, including a transition from joint to separate management of fish stocks in the Norwegian and Barents Seas.

Russian companies conduct fishing in Norway's exclusive economic zone in accordance with the bilateral intergovernmental agreement on mutual relations in the field of fisheries of 1976.