Next Year's Korea-China Fisheries Negotiations Reached... Number of Fishing Vessels Reduced by 50 Each

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] Next year, the number of fishing vessels from each country allowed to operate in the exclusive economic zones (EEZ) of Korea and China will be reduced by 50 vessels compared to this year.

The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries announced on the 19th that the 21st Korea-China Fisheries Joint Committee plenary meeting was held and the fisheries negotiations with this content were finalized. Both countries agreed to reduce the number of fishing vessels allowed to operate in each other's exclusive economic zones from 1,350 vessels to 1,300 vessels next year. In the case of Chinese vessels, 50 promising vessels, which have recently been frequently caught using illegal fishing gear, and 2 fish transport vessels supporting illegal fishing by promising vessels will also be reduced.

Inside the Jeju troll prohibited zone, where spawning and habitats of major fish species are concentrated, the number of Chinese pair trawl vessels was reduced by 2. The total catch quota for Chinese vessels remains at 56,750 tons according to the 2019 agreement. The reduction of the 'fishing scale,' which refers to the size of vessels engaged in fishing activities, has continued for six years since 2017. Accordingly, the fishing scale, which was 1,600 vessels in 2016, has been reduced to 1,350 vessels this year. The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries also reported that for Korean fishing vessels mainly catching hairtail in the Chinese EEZ, the fishing period has been extended by one month to 11 months, easing fishing conditions.

Both countries also discussed measures to prevent illegal fishing by Chinese vessels near the Northern Limit Line (NLL) in the East Sea and West Sea. The Chinese side formally stated that it will strongly crack down on illegal squid fishing by Chinese vessels in North Korean waters. In particular, in addition to information on vessels engaged in illegal fishing, if the Korean side collects other evidence such as photos of crew members, China will conduct enforcement operations based on this. The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries stated that China confirmed it had strongly punished Chinese vessels reported by Korea for illegal fishing in July.

Furthermore, China plans to strengthen patrols in Korean waters north of the Korea-China provisional measure zone near the West Sea NLL to prevent illegal fishing and will continue to strengthen cooperation with local governments that effectively manage Chinese vessels. Both countries plan to conduct joint patrols in the provisional measure zone (an area jointly managed by both countries under the fisheries agreement) in the first half of next year. They also discussed ways to rationally manage fishery resources within the provisional measure zone.

Both countries agreed to establish fishery resource management plans for the Korea-China provisional measure zone by 2024. Starting next year, Korea's National Institute of Fisheries Science will begin research on fishery resource management together with China's Yellow Sea Fisheries Research Institute. To conduct scientific resource assessments in the provisional measure zone, both countries will carry out resource surveys twice each next year, and an expanded scale of fish seed release will be conducted in China during June to July compared to this year.

The agreed fishing conditions will take effect once the chief representatives of both sides formally sign the memorandum of understanding and exchange it through diplomatic channels. Since 2001, Korea and China have alternately held the Korea-China Fisheries Joint Committee annually under the fisheries agreement, and this year, due to the impact of COVID-19, the meeting was held via video conference for the second consecutive year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.