China, the world’s largest offender of illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing recently joined the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization’s Port State Measures Agreement (PSMA), to combat the practice. While some have hailed China’s accession to the PSMA as a milestone, others see the move as an image-conscious strategy that will have little to no effect on its vast deep-sea fishing fleet and its illegal activities.
According to the London-based think tank Overseas Development Institute (ODI), China’s distant-water fishing (DWF) fleet has close to 17,000 vessels, some 600 of which operate year-round in Latin America, depleting fish stocks and devastating ecosystems through its abusive and illegal fishing practices.
Although the PSMA focuses primarily on foreign vessels arriving in a country’s ports, it also requires signatories to investigate and penalize their own vessels when illegal activities are suspected. However, China’s strategic and economic interests in maintaining its DWF fleet is likely to clash with PSMA’s requirements and intents. As China officially joined the agreement, hundreds of vessels, part of its fishing fleet, were spotted fishing at the edge of Argentina’s exclusive economic zone. The fleet, notorious for fishing illegally and even encroaching on jurisdictional waters, prompted the Argentine Navy to ramp up surveillance.
In late April, the Chilean Navy deployed personnel to monitor and control the transit of the Chinese fishing fleet through the Strait of Magellan. Weeks prior, Ecuadorian nongovernmental organization Galápagos Marine Reserve Insular Front pointed out via social media that China’s fishing fleet was on the move toward Peru.
“From a territorial and fishing resource utilization standpoint, China’s presence weakens national sovereignty and hinders economic and population growth,” Argentine César Lerena, president of the Center for Latin American Fisheries Studies (CESPEL), told Diálogo. China, the expert says, is after the fishing resources of countries of the region. “From a biological standpoint, this uncontrolled grab [of fisheries] could lead to the depletion of the ecosystem.”
According to the National Society of Artisanal Fisheries of Peru (SONAPESCAL), in recent years, Chinese vessels’ IUU fishing has caused significant economic losses and has harmed more than 20,000 Peruvian fishermen and their families. In Peru and Ecuador, these fleets operate mainly to catch giant squid. However, they have also been documented catching sharks, including endangered species such as hammerhead sharks. In April, in Manta, in the province of Manabí, Ecuador, the National Police seized some 15 tons of shark fins and seahorses destined for the Chinese market.
Presence in the Amazon
Chinese vessels have also been reported off the coast of the Brazilian state of Pará, in the Amazon, specifically in the region of Marajó Island. These activities include trawling and, according to local reports, the collection of fresh water from Amazonian rivers for sale abroad.
“Chinese fishing vessels use a specific technique to drag more fish from the ocean; they shouldn’t normally do this near the coast, but Chinese vessels do,” Carlos Augusto Gouvêa, mayor of Marajó, told Argentine news site Infobae.
The damage to local fishermen is enormous. Using this illegal technique of mass trawling with nets, Chinese ships can catch the most valuable specimens. Small Brazilian fishermen see themselves forced to negotiate clandestinely for part of these fish to meet local demand.
In February 2025, the Brazilian Institute of the Environment and Renewable Resources (IBAMA) and the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio), both governmental agencies, carried out a joint operation on the Xingu River in the Amazonian state of Pará. They seized more than 3 tons of illegal fish, mainly mapará (Hypophthalmus edentatus), caught during the closed season. Although the nationality of the vessels was not specified, the scale of the operation reflects the seriousness of the problem.
According to Lerena, despite efforts, China continues to fish illegally in many countries in the region, indicating potential areas for strengthening current approaches. In late 2024, following what artisanal fishermen described as the “worst year for the fishing industry,” Peru established procedures granting the Peruvian Armed Forces the “legitimate use of force” to combat illicit maritime activities, including IUU fishing from the Chinese fishing fleet. In September, the Peruvian government enacted a law mandating stricter control of foreign-flagged vessels, requiring them to install a satellite tracking system managed by the Peruvian Navy.
“China carries out its illegal fishing activities openly. On many occasions, it collaborates with countries tempted to accept contributions from Chinese companies to improve their ports or shipyards. These structures are central to facilitating logistical support for Chinese vessels fishing illegally,” says Lerena. For experts, Latin America’s woes with China’s fishing fleet and IUU fishing are a constant battle far from over.
