The small, uninhabited islands of Matthew and Hunter have been the subject of a long running territorial dispute between Vanuatu and France, with both countries claiming sovereignty over them - in France's case, it says they are part of its territory of New Caledonia.
The dispute remains very much unresolved.
In the latest development, Vanuatu's national fishing monitoring agency confirmed the three long-liner fishing vessels based in Noumea were sailing in these disputed waters.
