It quoted Sergei Dankvert, chief of Russia's Federal Veterinary Service, as saying last week that the inspection would be carried out in early 2007.

He said the decision was made after his agency had discovered 4,800 packages of tra and basa fillet from Vietnam trying to enter without legal documents.

Russia imported 12,400 tons of tra and basa (pangasius) fillet from Vietnam in the first nine months of this year, an increase of 203% year-on-year.

Dankvert said Russia would only allow import of basa and tra processed at plants inspected by Russian authorities.

The Federal Veterinary Service will also make inspection tours of seafood processing units in Iceland, Demark, and the Netherlands.

Source: VietNamNet