A. Former Soviet Union/Russian Federation 



Japanese and Soviet/Russian fishennen fish in each 

 otlier's zone under an amiual bilateral fisheries 

 agreement. The 1993 Agreement provided non-fee 

 quotas for both countries at 171,000 t, an 11,000 t 

 decrease from 1992. An additional 18,000 t (down 

 12,000 t from 1992) was allocated to Japan for a $5.9 

 million cooperation fee, the same as in 1992. The 

 Japanese negotiators reportedly requested that 1993 

 allocations remain the same as in 1992, but Russia was 

 determined to significantly decrease Japanese 

 allocations because of allegedly depleted Alaska 

 pollcKk, cod, and flatfish stocks in the western North 

 Pacific.-' 



Japanese salmon vessels fished in U.S., Soviet, 

 and high-seas waters under conditions set fordi under 

 the International North Pacific Fisheries Convention 

 (INPFC) until 1988. Since that time, the Japanese non- 

 traditional fleet has lost its access to U.S. waters while 

 the directed fishing for salmon on the high-seas has 

 been banned as of 1993 under the Convention for the 

 Conservation of Anadramous Stocks in the North 

 Pacific Ocean, the successor convention to the INPFC. 

 At present, Japanese salmon vessels only have access 

 to Russian-origin salmon in Japanese waters, and 

 salmon in the Russian FEZ. 



Access and fees for Russian-origin salmon are 

 negotiated annually. The 1993 Japan-Russia salmon 

 agreement allows Japanese vessels access to 21,000 t of 

 Russian-origin salmon in Russian waters and 4,819 t in 

 Japanese waters. Although diis allocation is a 2,000 t 

 increase over the 1992 allocation, it is still not large 

 enough to support the Japanese distant-water salmon 

 fleet. Negotiations over the 1993 agreement were 

 deadlocked for over a week when Russia insisted on 

 Japanese conipen.sation for damages incurred as a 

 result of illegal high-seas salmon fishing by tiie 88- 

 vessel small coastal salmon fleet. Japan argued that 

 under international law, the flag nation has the right of 

 enforcing and punishing for high-seas violations. 

 Based on this principle, Japan has been imposing strict 

 punishment on its fishermen and feels no obligation to 

 pay compensation. No mention of compensation was 

 made in the final agreement, but Japan agreed to 

 provide Russia with an unspecified amount of 

 additional money for the "reproduction of Russian 

 salmon." This sum will reportedly be calculated by 



multiplying the total amount of illegally caught sahiion 

 by tlie fisheries cooperation fee of $1,200 per ton.'* 



With the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 

 December 1991, tliere has been an increasing number 

 of joint ventures with Russian companies. The 

 number of Russia (former Soviet Uiiion)-Japan fishery 

 joint ventures doubled from just 7 in 1989 to 14 in 

 1991 (appendix QQ). These joint ventures are involved 

 in a wide range of activities, from herring roe 

 processing to crab pot fishing. Other joint ventures in 

 Russian waters include joint fishing operations for 

 Pacific cod and hair crab, purchases of Alaska pollock 

 at sea from Russian fishing vessels, and joint seaweed 

 and sea urchin harvesting off Kaigarajima Island 

 (located 3.5 kilometers off the east coast of Hokkaido). 

 The purchase of Alaska pollock at sea from Russian 

 vessels has provided a significant supply for the 

 Japanese market, annually ranging between 5,000 to 

 70,000 tons since 1987 (appendix RR). Japanese firms 

 are also assisting Russian companies in salmon 

 hatchery development. 



Although Japanese companies are wary of Russian 

 trustworthiness and product quality, Russian fishery 

 resources are plentiful and available at comparatively 

 cheap prices. It is evident that Japan will continue, and 

 probably increase, its investment in Russian Far 

 Eastern fisheries where fishery resources are still 

 relatively cheap and abundant. 



B. East Asia 



China: Japan and China have not implemented 

 200-mile EEZs vis-a-vis each other. Bilateral fishery 

 relations in the East China and Yellow Seas are 

 conducted through the Japan-China Fisheries 

 Agreement which went into effect on December 22, 

 1975. The Joint Fisheries Commission established 

 under this agreement meets once a year to review 

 conservation measures for fishery resources of common 

 interest. As with the ROK, illegal fishing by Chinese 

 fishermen in Japanese waters has been the primary 

 matter of concern under this bilateral agreement. 



Japanese investment in Chinese fishery companies 

 began in 1985 with Taiyo's joint trawling venture with 

 the Zhousan Joint Fisheries company (appendix SS). 

 As of 1991 , a total of four Japanese companies (Taiyo, 

 Yamanaga, Yamato Kogyo, Niihama Shoji) are 

 involved in trawling joint ventures in China. Other 



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