The US should consider leading a multilateral coalition with South American nations to prevent China’s illegal trade and trade practices, a US intelligence agency recommended in a document obtained by Axios.
Why does it matter: China’s illegal fishing industry is the largest in the world. Beijing has made deep-sea fishing a geopolitical priority, seeing China’s private fishing fleets as a way to expand state power beyond its shores.
- A senior US official confirmed to Axios that several government agencies are “looking at this in light of the president’s priorities,” which include “deepening cooperation with allies and partners on the challenges we face for our economy and national security.” ”. ”
What happens: Huge fleets of hundreds of Chinese vessels have had boats fishing illegally in the territorial waters of South American countries, including off the Galapagos Islands.
- The activity depleted stocks and disrupted food chains in a practice called illegal, unreported or unregulated (IUU) fishing.
- South American nations say these fleets pose a challenge to their economic and environmental security, but their seas often do not have the resources to effectively monitor and patrol their own waters.
- Last year, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru said they would join forces to defend their territorial waters from incursions by Chinese ships.
Details: “South American countries would probably welcome a coalition effort to increase trade pressure on China and enforce fisheries standards,” officials from the Bureau of Intelligence and Analysis wrote in a Feb. 5 document labeled sensitive but unclassified.
- “Unilateral pressure from the United States is likely to lead to similar sanctions by China, as Beijing has done by enacting a new law to counter US restrictions on technology companies,” the agency said. of information within the Department of Homeland Security.
- Several offices and agencies are working together on this effort, including the US Coast Guard, the Naval Intelligence Office, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the State Department, according to the government document and sources.
Document evaluated with “high confidence” that Chinese fishing in South American waters would “also cause continued economic damage to the US domestic fisheries as a result of anti-competitive tactics”.
- He assessed with “average confidence” that China would “continue to exploit fishing practices in South American waters, despite recent action by governments and an intergovernmental organization to limit these activities.”
- He also assessed with “average confidence” that South American countries would welcome a coalition to increase the application of fishing standards.
What are they saying: “There is a lack of understanding of this issue, that it is a global problem, that fishing is quite stressed,” the senior administration official told Axios.
- The Trump administration “has begun some work on the global anti-IUU issue on China’s role, as it has emerged as the largest author in this regard,” the official said, adding that the Biden administration continues to see this as a priority.
Background: Former Chinese President Hu Jintao called for China to build a large maritime power, and in 2013 the Chinese State Council raised the fishing industry to a strategic industry.
- The Chinese government provides subsidies to the fishing industry, which allows boats to cover the fuel costs of sailing to distant coasts, including near West Africa and South America.
- “China’s leaders see remote water fleets as a way to project their presence around the world, so when it comes time to establish regulatory frameworks, they will have a big say in how those frameworks are set up.” said Tabitha Mallory, CEO of consulting firm China Ocean Institute and an associate professor at the University of Washington.
- The goal is to be “present all over the world’s oceans so that they can direct the results of international agreements covering maritime resources,” Mallory said, “including not only fishing, but seabed mining, the Arctic,” and other issues and regions. key.
The US government has paid more attention to China’s increasingly global deep-sea fishing fleets in recent years.
- The Maritime Safety and Fisheries Implementation Act (SAFE), adopted in December 2019, established a “government-wide approach” to combating IUU fishing.
- In May 2020, President Trump issued an executive order to combat illegal deep-sea fishing and to help promote US competitiveness in the industry.
- In September 2020, the State Department added fish caught by China’s remote fishing fleets to the list of goods produced by forced labor – a possible high concern in the DHS document as well.
Bottom line: “Other countries also need to look at these issues,” Mallory said. “Whatever the US does alone will be seen by the Chinese as just part of the backdrop to growing power.”