Hanoi (VNA) – Indonesia and France areboosting cooperation in maritime affairs and aquaculture, marked by the signingof a Letter of Intent (LOI) on the establishment of bilateral maritime dialogue,a joint statement on the development of marine and fisheries cooperationprogrammes, and a LOI on the development of eco-friendly seaports in Indonesia.
Indonesian Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries SaktiWahyu Trenggono said on June 9 that Indonesia’s seafood export to Francereached 7,680 tonnes worth 31.87 million USD last year.
He hoped that the French Government will help Indonesiaearly harvest and ship over 500 kinds of fishery products to the European Unionwithout having to wait for the conclusion of other negotiations in the Indonesian-European Union Comprehensive EconomicPartnership Agreement (IEU-CEPA).
Trenggono said the IndonesianGovernment is always committed to eliminating illegal fishing activities.
Minister of Overseas Territoriesof France Annick Girardin, for her part, said the two countries will shareinformation related to the prevention of illegal fishing and harmonisation ofactions in the field./.