WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Washington and Moscow have signed a bilateral deal aimed at fighting illegal fishing, the US State Department announced in a release on Friday.
"On September 11, 2015, Russian and US negotiators signed a bilateral agreement to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing," the release read.
The State Department explained the agreement aims to improve coordination among the multiple government agencies in their efforts to fight IUU fishing.
"In the United States, the agreement has the strong support of the fishing industry based in the Pacific Northwest/Alaska region, as well as the environmental community," the release noted.
The deal between the two countries was signed during the annual Intergovernmental Consultative Committee meeting in Portland, Oregon.
The United States and Russia cooperate on scientific research, reciprocal allocation of surplus fish resources, on fishery issues of mutual concern as well as on addressing illegal and unregulated fishing activities.
In March, President Barack Obama extended the Mutual Fisheries Agreement with Russia aimed at maintaining a fisheries relationship that benefits both countries.
