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Fishery talks set to resume soon

Taiwan will soon request a resumption of fishery talks with Japan, with the aim of discussing issues related to bilateral fishery problems, a Ministry of Foreign Affairs official said yesterday.

Lo Koon-tsan (羅坤燦), executive director of the ministry's Committee on Japanese Affairs, said the 16th round of Taiwan-Japan fishery talks should have been held in March or last month, but were postponed due to technical problems.

He said talks have been stalled because the gap between the two sides remains wide, with differences arising from overlapping exclusive economic zones and both sides' refusal to recognize a provisional line of demarcation.

Lo said that since 1996, Taiwan and Japan have held 15 rounds of fishery talks.

During the 15th round -- held in Tokyo on July 29, last year -- the two sides reached a four-point conclusion, agreeing to establish a Taiwan-Japan fishery working group; hold the next round of fishery talks in Taipei; push for exchanges between Taiwanese and Japanese fishery operators; and creating a working group to engage in substantive talks.

Lo said the 16th round of talks will build on the conclusions reached in the previous round, in the hope of continued coordination on fishing rights and avoiding unnecessary disputes.

The two countries have been embroiled in a dispute over their respective economic zones, with many Taiwanese fishing boats being chased away or detained by Japanese coast guard vessels while operating in waters outside the temporary "demarcation line."
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