In his opening remarks, First Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov declared that "expanding the presence of our fishing fleet in international waters is a geopolitical and economic priority for Russia, as is expanding our presence in areas governed by international conventions and in the 200-mile zones controlled by foreign countries."

"Much has to be done in this area. At present Russia has almost fully stopped distant-water fishing in international waters. It is enough to say that in the last 18 years the total Soviet/Russian catch outside its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) decreased from 4.8 million tons in 1990 to 974,000 tons in 2008. This situation is not acceptable," Mr Zubkov concluded.

The Commission discussed ways to resume regular fishing in international waters and areas of the world's oceans governed by international convention, where the Russian fishing vessels can operate at a profit. It is necessary to modernize Russian fishing vessels, create conditions for the construction of new vessels, resume regular research expeditions to evaluate the resources of the world's oceans, and actively uphold national interests in international fishing organizations.

Mr Zubkov observed that the Government has already taken certain steps towards reaching these goals. For instance, the government has allocated more than 10 billion roubles for the construction of long-distance research vessels under the auspices of the federal targeted programme to increase the efficiency of the fishing industry and develop its resource potential. Mr Zubkov recalled that another 206.1 million roubles would be spent to equip research vessels for long-distance fishing outside Russia's EEZ. "This is a big sum, especially during the crisis. Today we will see how whether it is being spent effectively and on schedule," he said.

The Commission also discussed measures to intensify international cooperation to prevent illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. "Russia is an active participant in the International Plan of Action to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate IUU Fishing developed by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)," noted Mr Zubkov. In his opinion, the Russian National Plan of Action for Stopping IUU, which will outline the main principles of Russian policy, legislation and practical measures to curtail IUU fishing, will facilitate this effort.

Mr Zubkov reported that the Plan would be ready by the beginning of the next year.