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Panel: Chinese fishing fleets' IUU and dual-use activities erode Pacific territories' economies and security
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Summary
Witnesses and members said illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and commercial fleets with dual-use capabilities harm island economies, enable surveillance and are used for smuggling and other criminality across the Pacific.
Witnesses and members at a House Natural Resources subcommittee hearing described how illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing by large fleets ' including many China-linked vessels ' has harmed Pacific Island and U.S. territorial economies and can serve as a cover for surveillance, smuggling and other illicit activity.
"Oh, it's devastating," Cleo Pascall, a nonresident senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told the subcommittee when asked how IUU fishing affected island economies and communities. She described overlapping commercial, strategic and criminal uses of fishing vessels, noting examples where fleets have intimidated local coast guards and where human-rights abuses and smuggling are associated with the commercial activity.
Francisco Ben Cosme said China operates a very large deep-sea fishing fleet that stresses local fisheries and livelihoods. "There's a PRC which has the largest deep sea fleet, with 17,000 vessels, the majority of which operate in The Pacific," he testified, and he tied those pressures to food-security and economic risks for island populations.
Witnesses and members also discussed the broader strategic implications: fishing vessels can loiter near undersea cables and critical nodes, or serve as a maritime presence that complements other PRC activities in the region. Panelists recommended criminal enforcement against illegal operators, improved maritime domain awareness, and U.S. technical assistance to boost territorial and partner-country monitoring and enforcement capacity.
Members pressed witnesses about enforcement options and coordination with partners including NOAA and regional maritime forces. The hearing record will remain open for written follow-ups.
