China has responded to U.S. accusations of illegal fishing, rejecting the claims and labeling them as political manipulation.
According to sea-news.az this statement was made by Guo Szyakun, an official representative of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
During a briefing, in response to a U.S. report accusing China of illegal fishing, he noted: “This so-called decision, based on the internal laws of the United States, does not reflect objective reality and is inconsistent with international law. The main goal is to deliberately hinder the development of China’s marine fishing sector.”
Guo Szyakun pointed out that these accusations made by Washington are nothing more than blatant political manipulation, and Beijing strongly protests against them. The diplomat added that China approaches the suppression of illegal fishing activities with great responsibility and applies a “zero tolerance” principle toward such violations.
The Foreign Ministry official reminded that China has a comprehensive legislative framework that positions the country as a leader in implementing regional fishing commitments. He noted that in April 2015, China officially joined the Port State Measures Agreement to prevent, deter, and eliminate illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing. It was stated that Beijing is actively contributing to solving problems related to the conservation of fish resources.
“However, the United States itself has earned a very negative and notorious reputation in matters of illegal fishing, destruction of marine resources, and pollution of the marine ecosystem,” Guo Szyakun added, supporting his argument by citing instances where the U.S. has violated established fishing quotas.
