LATVIA, ESTONIA MOVING TO DEFUSE MARITIME DISPUTE.

Estonia’s Foreign Ministry yesterday apologized to Latvia after the Estonian coastal guard detained and boarded a Latvian trawler March 3, mistakenly concluding that it was fishing in Estonian waters. On the same day, the Estonian coastal guard chased another Latvian trawler which had in fact entered waters claimed by Estonia. The episode follows the March 1 meeting of the Latvian and Estonian prime ministers, Andris Skele and Tiit Vahi, who agreed on the need to avoid incidents and find temporary practical solutions to the dispute. The two countries disagree on the delimitation of their respective waters in rich fishing grounds in the Gulf of Riga; both have in recent months sent coastal guard boats to protect their trawlers in the unadjudicated waters. The dispute has not affected other aspects of bilateral relations. (14)

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