Morocco and Russia are preparing the groundwork for a new fishing agreement in the Kingdom's Saharan waters. This is evident from a press release issued by the Russian Embassy in Rabat. «The Russian research vessel Atlantenero, part of the Russian Federal Fisheries Agency's Great African Expedition, has begun a research mission in cooperation with the Moroccan National Institute of Fisheries Research to assess the exploitation of small pelagic fish species in the Kingdom of Morocco's Atlantic fishing zone». Two weeks earlier, the two parties decided to extend the current legal framework governing the activities of Russian fishing vessels in the Sahara, which came into force on October 14, 2020, until the end of 2024. This announcement has drawn criticism from Spain. «After the rulings of the Court of Justice of the European Union, annulling the fishing agreements with Morocco, certain countries, such as Russia, are not missing this opportunity», regrets La Razon. Algeria and the Polisario, on the other hand, have maintained an unusual silence following the conclusion of the agreement between Morocco and Russia, which included the Sahara, on October 14, 2020.
