Britain welcomes French move to delay sanctions over fishing dispute

LONDON - Britain welcomes the French government's announcement that it will not go ahead with implementing sanction measures as planned on Tuesday, a British government spokesperson said Monday night.

"As we have said consistently, we are ready to continue intensive discussions on fisheries, including considering any new evidence to support the remaining license applications," the spokesperson said in a statement.

The spokesperson said British Brexit Minister David Frost has accepted France's European Affairs Minister Clement Beaune's invitation for talks in Paris on Thursday.

French President Emmanuel Macron, who earlier on Monday met with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on the sidelines of the United Nations climate conference in Glasgow, told reporters that the French plan was on hold pending the outcome of renewed talks.

France seized a British trawler and gave a warning to another boat Thursday morning, following threats of retaliatory measures against Britain's fishing industry and other trade, including preventing British fishing boats from disembarking at ports, increasing border and sanitary checks on British goods.

Post-Brexit fishing row between Britain and France started earlier this year after the British Channel island of Jersey's government introduced a new licensing system requiring French boats to show fishing history in Jersey's waters to obtain future permits. It prompted both sides to dispatch navy vessels to monitor the situation in Jersey's waters in May.