Published 01:28 IST, December 13th 2020
UK deploys naval vessels on standby to protect its waters in case of no-deal Brexit
The move comes as UK negotiations enter the final 48 hours of talks to strike a post-Brexit trade deal ahead of the transition period that expires December 31.
On December 11, the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence said in a statement that it has deployed at least four Armed Royal Navy boats of 80-meters (260-feet) each to patrol the nation's territorial waters against illegal fishing as a warning to EU. The move comes as negotiations enter the final 48 hours of talks to strike a post-Brexit trade deal ahead of the transition period that expires December 31.
In case the negotiations end without a trade deal, the UK naval officers will confiscate all EU fishing boats that trespass Britain's exclusive economic zone (EEZ) to safeguard British waters, authorities told UK broadcasters. The UK defence ministry has conducted extensive planning and preparation to ensure that the armed forces are ready for a range of scenarios at the end of the Transition Period on January 1, the ministry spokesman told British agencies.
UK PM Boris Johnson stated that it was "very, very, very likely" that the talks on the Brexit negotiations would fail as UK leaves the EU single market and customs union. This would mean that the UK will stand compliant to World Trade Organisation 1995 terms that are likely to surge business tariffs once the transition period concludes. As per reports, tariffs will hit the UK’s deal governing almost $1 trillion of annual trade. Extensive negotiations are needed in the field of governance and fisheries with France and the outcome is still uncertain as the UK seeks Canada or Australia-style trade deal.
In earlier negotiations in London, none of the conditions of the agreement was met, the European Commission informed. British officials dismissed negotiations as reaching "difficult points" as the UK still hasn't reach common ground with EU for a post-Brexit trade agreement with respect to fisheries activities, freedom of competition, handling of future relations, and police and judicial cooperation on criminal matters.
[UK navy vessels in British waters. Credit: MOD UK]
To ensure 'deterrence, inspection capabilities'
UK’s defence ministry told sources of BBC that the offshore patrol vessels protect the rights of the UK’s maritime sovereignty as the nation becomes an independent coastal state. The boats will conduct operations to ensure deterrence, inspection capabilities, and a range of other scenarios as the Transition Period concludes. Shrewsbury and Atcham MP Daniel Kawczynski and several other British MPs had urged Prime Minister Boris Johnson to protect UK’s territorial waters from "illegal French fishing".
Updated 01:28 IST, December 13th 2020