Australian and Chinese fishery officials discussed China’s sign-on to a key instrument against illegal fishing at a meeting in northwestern China this week.
The third annual meeting of the Australia-China Fisheries Bilateral Forum comes at a time when increased Chinese economic and fishery activity in Australia’s backyard has caused tensions and reduced global tuna prices.
The Australian delegation, led by Melissa Brown, the deputy head of the Fisheries Branch of the Australian Department of Agriculture traveled to Xian, China, for the meeting with Chinese counterparts led by Liu Xin Zhong, deputy head of the fisheries regulatory department at the Ministry of Agriculture.
Topics for discussion included China’s position on illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and the country’s move to adopt the Port States Measures Agreement in 2020, according to a Chinese readout of the talks. Beijing’s sign-on to the United Nations treaty, which requires countries to close their ports to illegal fishing vessels and to share real-time information on vessel movement and cargoes, could be instrumental in reducing illegal fishing, given that China also boasts the world’s biggest distant-water fleet.
Australia has been vocal in its opposition to heightened Chinese fishing and military activity in the Pacific Islands, but its protests are limited by the commercial allure of China, with which Australia has a free trade deal.
While the two countries – both members of the SIOFA body regulating the Indian Ocean fishery resources – are competitors for the Indian Ocean tuna catch, China is Australia’s top market for agriculture and fisheries products.
China has increased its presence as an alternative lender in the Pacific islands, further putting the two countries in competition with one another. Fiji and Vanuatu have been a particular focus of Chinese attention, with major fisheries investments following on from Beijing’s diplomatic efforts to lure the Pacific islands away from diplomatic relations with Taiwan.
Photo courtesy of Aritra Deb/Shutterstock
