China’s evolving fishing industry : implications for regional and global maritime security

Abstract

Having the world’s largest fishing fleet while facing depleting fishery resources in its inshore waters, China’s marine catch sector has been experiencing two major structural adjustments: a shift from inshore to offshore fishing and expanding Distant Water Fishing (DWF). The shift from inshore to offshore fishing is leading to growing illegal fishing operations by Chinese fishermen in neighboring countries’ EEZs and disputed waters, particularly in the East China Sea and South China Sea. These operations become triggers for maritime tensions and clashes in the region. Meanwhile, the rapid expansion of China’s distant water fishing fleet also has notable implications for global maritime security. China’s growing distant water fishing fleet is also one of the factors leading to China’s efforts to build a blue water navy to safeguard China’s maritime interests. However, it might also contribute to overfishing and illegal fishing which threatens the sustainability of the global fishing sector.

The root causes of fishing disputes between China and other countries are China’s worsening supply and demand imbalances for aquatic products, and overcapacity of its marine catch sector. Thus, in order to manage fisheries disputes and prevent fishing disputes from escalating into regional and global diplomatic and security conflicts, efforts at national, regional and global levels are needed. At the national level, China needs to step up efforts to address the demand and supply imbalances and at the regional and global level, cooperation and coordination among countries are essential to prevent fishing disputes from escalating. If the structural shifts of China’s fishing industry could be well managed, the fishing sector could be an ideal field for cooperation to achieve maritime safety and security at both regional and global levels.