The Pacific Island nation of Vanuatu has removed three vessels from its national fishing registry after they were recently fined for illegal fishing in Argentina’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
According to Milko Schvartzman, the ocean policy coordinator at Argentina-based environmental NGO Circulo de Politicas Ambientales, the three vessels – Bao Win, Hai Xing 2, and Bao Feng – were flagged to Vanuatu while fishing off of the Argentinian coast but all belong to the same Chinese company: Hai Shun Shipping Co.
Using electronic monitoring and automatic identification system (AIS) data, Argentinian authorities determined the vessels were conducting illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing activities within the South American country’s EEZ. As a result, all three vessels were fined, with the USD 900,000 (EUR 763,000) fine levied on Bao Feng setting an Argentinian record for such an offense.
According to Pacific Islands news outlet Islands Business, the vessels were originally approved for registration by the Vanuatu Fisheries Department in June 2024, shortly before the Vanuatu International Shipping Registry (VISR) overhauled its leadership.
Since the new administration took over VISR in late 2024, the organization has introduced several measures to crack down on illegal fishing, including new zero-tolerance policies on IUU fishing.
Soon after the vessels were fined, VISR removed them from the nation’s fishing registry.
“The current administration inherited a system requiring significant strengthening and has acted decisively,” VISR Administrator Saade Makhlouf said, per Islands Business. “Vanuatu takes IUU risks seriously, and vessels exposing the flag to repeated regulatory or reputational risk will not be allowed to remain under the registry.”
“This is a strong step forward in the fight against IUU fishing and flags of convenience,” Schvartzman added.
Chinese vessels fishing for squid off the Argentine coast have been found to engage in overfishing, forced labor, marine wildlife abuse, and other IUU fishing activities, according to a 2025 report from the Environmental Justice Foundation.
“There’s a lot of data there and more coming all the time,” EJF CEO Steve Trent told SeafoodSource last year. “The one thing I can say is these aren’t isolated events. In every geography, in every jurisdiction, across every company, and almost every vessel that we’ve identified to investigate, we are seeing the same crimes.”
