Stéphane Pinto a French fishing captain from Boulogne has warned the UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson that walking away with no post-Brexit trade deal could spark a “naval battle.”
Stéphane Pinto said The UK can’t just click their fingers and say the French can’t fish in the British waters any more.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: UK Negotiator Mr Frost Warns Brussels To Stop Unrealistic Demands
The European chief negotiator Michel Barnier and his UK counterpart David Frost are still looking towards sealing a post-Brexit trade deal before the end of Boris Johnson’s October 15 deadline.
Major issues holding down the trade negotiation borders mainly on fishing, level playing field and governance, of which both the EU and the UK are yet to agree on a way forward.
The fishing captain said the UK leaving the EU without a deal would create “tensions” and warned that it might lead to “naval battles” between both sides.
“They can’t just click their fingers and say we can’t fish in British waters any more. We are talking about agreements going back decades,” the deputy head of the fishermen’s committee of the northern region of Hauts-de-France told The Sunday Times,
“The rest of Europe, the Dutch, the Belgians, the Danes and the other French fishermen will find themselves cohabiting in such a small geographical area that there will be greater pressure on resources.
“Given everyone also uses different fishing techniques, it is going to create tension. It might even lead to naval battles.”
