Two British Royal Navy ships have been dispatched to Jersey amid a row over fishing rights.
The row is between the Jersey government and French fishermen, over licenses issued by the Jersey government to allow fishing in its waters.
The new rules were introduced last week, and are part of a new post-Brexit trade agreement between the United Kingdom and the European Union (EU).
They require French ships that want to fish in Jersey’s territorial waters to prove a history of fishing in the territory’s jurisdiction. However the French fishermen claim that additional requirements were added without notice. In addition, French authorities claim that the new requirements were not communicated to the EU meaning they are unenforceable.
France has also said it is willing to cut off the island’s electricity.
In reaction to the new rules, boats from France and Jersey have blockaded the island’s main port and are preventing freight from leaving. This has resulted in the British government sending two Royal Navy ships to ‘monitor’ the situation.
According to the BBC, a French navy ship has also been sent to Jersey.
Senator Ian Gorst, the island’s external relations minister, said, ‘It’s really important that we are able to work with those fishermen to help them provide the necessary evidence so that, if required, their licences can be amended. As I’ve said, it’s important that we respond to threats, but the answer to this …… is to continue to talk, and diplomacy.’
Jersey, which is 22 km off the French coast, is not officially part of the United Kingdom but is rather a Crown dependency, although London is constitutionally responsible for its defence.
During World War II the island was occupied by the Nazis for four years.