In a bid to promote international cooperation and guarantee Taiwan’s fishing operations in waters surrounding South Pacific nations, the Council of Agriculture on Thursday signed fisheries cooperation agreements with Tuvalu and Nauru.
Two separate agreements were signed with Tuvalu and Nauru, with Tuvaluan Prime Minister Enele Sopoaga, Nauruan Secretary of Foreign Affairs and Trade Michael Aroi and top fisheries officials of the three nations attending the signing ceremonies.
Tuvalu and Nauru are two of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies in the South Pacific and have fisheries partnerships with Taiwan, while the waters surrounding the two nations are rich in tuna and are important fishing grounds for Taiwanese fishermen, the council said.
Taiwan’s tuna industry produces 160,000 to 220,000 tonnes of tuna per year and is worth NT$7 billion (US$213.73 million). Most of the nation’s tuna-fishing vessels operate in waters within 200 nautical miles (370km) of South Pacific nations, including Tuvalu and Nauru.
The council reached an understanding with both nations after a year of negotiations.
The agreements are a milestone for Taiwanese fishing boats, that are now able to unload catches in Tuvalu and Nauru, Council of Agriculture Minister Chen Chih-ching (陳志清) said.
“Most of Taiwan’s purse seiners operate in waters near the two nations. Following the signing of the agreement, the two nations would be able to board Taiwanese fishing boats to conduct inspections, which is just one aspect of the fisheries cooperation,” Fisheries Agency Director-General Tsay Tzu-yaw (蔡日耀) said.
Cooperation with the two nations had been limited to fee fishing and fisheries investment. The agreement expands the scope and degree of cooperation to cover promotion of fishing ventures; post-harvest fishing processing and marketing; joint fisheries conservation; information sharing on fishing activities; and combating illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing practices.
IUU fishing causes international losses of between US$10 billion and US$23 billion every year, with the US and the EU banning the import of aquatic products from nations that fail to cooperate in the fight against IUU fishing.
The agreement is a step forward for Taiwan in combating IUU fishing and complying with foreign-market demands, said the council, which has been trying to have the EU withdraw a “yellow card” it issued last year for the nation’s failure to deter IUU fishing.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it