Taiwan, U.S. agree further cooperation to tackle IUU fishing

Taipei, July 31 (CNA) Taiwan and the United States agreed to continue their cooperation to tackle illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing (IUU fishing) during an annual consultation between the two sides in Taipei earlier this week, the Fisheries Agency said in a statement Thursday.

The consultation took place at the Ministry of Agriculture on Monday and Tuesday, with Fisheries Agency Director-General Wang Mao-chen (王茂城) leading the Taiwanese side in the annual exchange of policies and discussions on topics including IUU fishing, the agency said.

The two countries agreed to establish contacts under the U.S. Interagency Working Group on IUU Fishing for both sides to share intelligence on fishing activities that violate national laws or international fisheries conservation and management measures, the agency said.

Taiwan and the U.S. will also discuss measures under the U.S. working group, including high seas boarding and inspection of fishing vessels, as well as how countries verify that foreign ships comply with international standards and regulations, the agency said.

The working group was set up after the U.S. Congress passed the Maritime Security and Fisheries Enforcement Act in 2019 "to support and coordinate a government-wide effort to address IUU fishing globally," according to the U.S. Congress' website.

Taiwanese officials and their U.S. counterparts also discussed an extension of the Memorandum of Understanding Concerning Cooperation in Fisheries and Aquaculture signed between the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) and the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the U.S., the agency said.

In addition, both countries agreed to maintaining ongoing cooperation on topics of shared interest at meetings of regional fisheries management organizations, the agency said.

The bilateral consultation is important as a way to enhance cooperation between Taiwan and the U.S. and improve sustainable fishing, given that the U.S. is one of the top seafood markets in the world and Taiwan is a leading country in fishing on the high seas, the agency said.