The Parliament of the Faroe Islands has passed a bill that would give the territory’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs the authority to sanction Russian fishing companies operating in its waters.
The bill paves the way for the Faroese government to specifically place sanctions on Russian fishing firms Murman Seafood and Norebo for allegedly carrying out espionage activity in European waters, following similar actions taken by the E.U., Norway, and Iceland.
While the bill was still being discussed, the Faroese fishing industry expressed concerns that possible Russian retaliation stemming from sanctions of Norebo and Murman could affect Faroese exports of pelagic fish to the Russian market and that Faroese ships could lose access to the Barents Sea.
Partially confirming those fears, Russian government-run media outlet RIA Novosti said the Faroe Islands has been made aware of possible retaliatory measures should it institute sanctions.
Now, the bill has passed before annual negotiations with Russia on 2026 fishing quotas have begun, possibly placing those talks fully on ice.
"No negotiations have [occurred] between us about the fishery agreement for 2026," the Faroese Ministry of Fisheries told SeafoodSource in an email, adding that informal talks had occurred when both countries participated in separate negotiations and officials from both countries have discussed possible dates to begin negotiations.
The ministry also acknowledged the possibility of retaliatory sanctions against Faroese companies.
"Russian authorities have expressed that retaliation is to be expected if the Faroe Islands implement sanctions against the Russian companies," it said in the email. "Specific measures have not been mentioned yet, and nothing has been said about whether it would affect Russian willingness to come to the negotiation table.”
By comparison, 2024 negotiations for this year’s quotas took place from 25 to 27 November.
The Faroe Islands has negotiated with Russia on fish quotas since 1977.
This year’s agreement gave 28 Russian ships a license to fish pelagic species, mostly blue whiting, in Faroese waters in return for access to cod stocks in the Barents Sea.
Since the inception of the agreement, officials from the two countries have negotiated annually about catch quotas.
Although some Faroese politicians have called for the total cancellation of the agreement since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, collaboration has nevertheless continued.
