Morocco says EU threats will not force fish accord

RABAT, Aug 29 (Reuter) - Morocco said on Tuesday it would

not allow threats by the European Union to force it into

submission after the collapse of talks on a fishing accord.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Ennahdi el-Idrissi, quoted by the

official Moroccan news agency MAP, said remarks by certain EU

officials would not help resolve the problem although he left

open the possibility of resuming negotiations with the EU.

"We regret that certain EU officials found it necessary to

make declarations on this subject," Idrissi said. "As a matter

of fact, these declarations only led to confusion and will not

help in any way achieve a definitive solution to this problem.

"Morocco, which remains ready to honour its traditional ties

with the European Union, nevertheless refuses to have a solution

dictated to it under threats as it will not allow itself to be

influenced by the blockades imposed by some Spanish fishing

organisations which we believe are counterproductive."

He was reacting to news from Brussels on Monday that talks

on a new three-year fishing accord between the two sides had

collapsed. EU Fisheries Commissioner Emma Bonino said she would

propose that the EU review its relations with Rabat.

Bonino said Morocco had rejected the Commission's final

offer on the extent of cuts to fish quotas that would have

allowed the mainly-Spanish EU fishing fleet to return to

Moroccan waters after a four-month deadlock.

The previous accord expired at the end of April and Morocco

refused to extend the agreement, saying its fish stocks were on

the verge of extinction. It demanded cuts of up to 65 percent in

catches of octopus and squid. The EU offered a cut of 25 percent

over three years.

Spanish fishermen, who had the lion's share of the 730

licences granted by Morocco under the previous accord, have

threatened a widespread blockade of Moroccan goods.

The accord with Morocco is the EU's most important external

fisheries agreement, providing a livelihood for 28,000 fishermen

and fish processors in Spain, Portugal and the Canary Islands.

The fishing accord gave Morocco, where 500,000 people rely

on the fishing industry for their livelihoods, preferential

tariffs for exports of tinned sardines to EU countries.

The EU accounts for 65 percent of Morocco's foreign trade.

Rabat is negotiating an association agreement with the EU and

King Hassan has made clear that full membership is his utlimate

goal.