A British culinary classic is the latest victim of Russian aggression after the UK imposed sanctions on a number of people following the death of Alexei Navalny.
An agreement dating back almost 70 years for British boats to fish in Russian waters, particularly the Barents Sea, has been torn up, meaning there could be shortages in the supply of beloved cod and haddock.
It is reported that over 550,000 tons of those two fish alone were caught there by British vessels last year.
That means not only is a regular supply of fish for Britain’s iconic fish and chip dish at risk, but it could mean the price of a chippy tea goes up too.
An example of its effect on prices was seen across Europe when Russia temporarily banned gasoline exports last year to balance the supply officials said it needed for itself.
Navalny, who was one of Vladimir Putin’s fiercest critics, died last week with the UK imposing sanctions on six people who ran the Arctic penal colony where he died on Wednesday (February 21).
And Russia broke an agreement in place since 1956 allowing British boats to fish in the Barents Sea that Russian parliamentary speaker Vyacheslav Volodin reportedly said had been revoked under Putin’s orders.
Lawmakers voted unanimously in favor of the decision.
In a statement, Volodin said: “When (Soviet leader) Nikita Khrushchev accepted this deal in 1956, it is hard to say what guided him but it was certainly not in the national interest.
“When people ask if we can respond to sanctions, the answer is: we can. The British need to learn some proverbs: ‘The Russians use the horse slowly, but it rides fast ‘.”
Since then, despite the huge catch of fish from the Barents Sea last year, the British Government has said that it has received no official notification from Russia on the matter, but that British vessels have not fished in those waters.
A Government spokesman said: “UK vessels do not fish in these Russian waters so this will not have a material impact on our fish supplies, including cod or haddock.”
How to join indy100’s free WhatsApp channel
Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter
Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.
