As QUAD bets big on Indo-Pacific, here’s how summit success challenges China’s status quo

QUAD’s plan to check China’s illegal fishing recently got a facelift in Japan after the member States discussed ways to curb Beijing’s supremacy in the region with the new Indo-Pacific Economic Forum agreement. According to the IUU (Illegal Unreported Unregulated) Fishing Index 2021 report which is responsible for mapping fishing in 152 countries that have observable coastlines, it was documented that Chinese ships were the ‘worst offenders.’

The report claimed Beijing was responsible for 95 per cent of illegal fishing activities in the Indo-Pacific. A region that is also home to 13 other countries representing 40 per cent of the world GDP. Therefore, when the US, India, Japan and Australia launched a maritime surveillance plan to keep an eye on Chinese vessels around the world, it was meant to antagonise Xi Jinping whose vast fishing fleet is accused of constantly violating economic zones, leading to sizable losses and damages to the environment, as reported by the IUU.

The story of China’s “fishy business”

On May 24, as QUAD nations agreed to launch maritime security systems, the problem of China’s overexploitation and illegal fishing hurting the world’s marine resources and the millions of human lives that depend on it was a topic of concern. QUAD leaders agreed that the problem was no longer limited to China’s backyard, it had spread to the South China Sea, the East China Sea, and even as far away as South America, and Western Africa. As Beijing’s greed grew, even friendly nations like Argentina and Mexico seemed threatened by encroaching Chinese fishing vessels, reported International Forum For Rights and Security (IFFRAS).

According to a report by Financial Times, Sierra Leone’s Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources, in an interview stated that the ‘Chinese fleet has been raking the profits of the fisheries for 30 years and the impact on fish stocks has been terrible.’ This was further substantiated in a research paper called Sink or Swim: The Future of Fisheries in the East and the South China Sea which detailed the irreparable economic and biological losses caused by Chinese consumption.

China’s grouse and QUAD’s gains

QUAD’s initiative will likely use state-of-the-art satellite technology to create a tracking system for Chinese vessels. According to ODI (Overseas Development Institute) a global think tank, China has over 17,000 distant-water fishing (DWF) vessels in its fleet-the largest of any country in the world. And the think tank also states that vessel ownership is highly fragmented and often attributed to small companies and registered in various jurisdictions to avoid being caught red-handed.

The new tracking system will be launched from the Indian Ocean all the way to the South Pacific by connecting surveillance centres in Singapore and India. This is expected to enable the QUAD group of nations can monitor all Chinese fishing activities in the region even if they turn off transponders which are typically used to track these vessels.

China cries foul, claims it cooperates with international laws

Beijing has responded to QUAD’s charges and has called itself a ‘responsible fishing country’ that has been cooperating internationally to clamp down on illegal fishing. It went on to add that its vessels only fish in economic zones where it has exclusive bilateral agreements.

India’s role in maritime surveillance

The IFC-IOR (Information Fusion Centre-Indian Ocean Region) back in 2018 called for regional collaboration on maritime security issues including “maritime terrorism”, trafficking, illegal fishing, armed robbery on the high seas and piracy. The organisation which is based in Delhi is a data centre with the ability to curate information from 50 nations and multinational maritime centres. The data points it can share will act as critical findings to decide on next course of action to counter China’s rising clout in the region-which will primarily come in the form of economic sanctions.

Key highlights from QUAD Summit 2022 in Japan

QUAD leaders Prime Ministers Narendra Modi, Fumio Kishida, Anthony Albanese, and US President Joe Biden issued a joint statement following the summit where they renewed their steadfast commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific. Some of the key points discussed and agreed on were as follows:

1)      Peace and stability (Russia-Ukraine war and its implications for Indo-Pacific)

2)      COVID-19 response and ensuring better healthcare systems

3)      QUAD Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation Package (Q-Champ)

4)      Maritime surveillance to pin China’s illegal fishing and overexploitation of resources

5)      Cooperation and sharing of critical infrastructure in cybersecurity

6)      Harnessing emerging technologies (5G)

7)      QUAD fellowship for STEM fields

8)      Space cooperation (QUAD Satellite Data Portal)

Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity: Caution and clarity

The IPEF is signed by 13 partner countries apart from the US. Namely India, Australia, Brunei, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

While the initiative is touted as a substantial step by the US as a part of its pivot to Asia outreach, this pact launched in 2017 has four pillars of focus: Supply-chain strength, clean energy shift, infrastructure development and resilient trade. It must be noted that the QUAD leaders have committed $50 billion for the development of the Indo-Pacific. However, it largely appears to be a smokescreen as it is built with an intent to alienate China and not convincingly work with Asian countries.

The IPEF relies more on promise than the prospect of delivery or tangible outcomes. The various questions it has raised are:

1)      If it is not a free-trade agreement, what is the point of this pact?

2)      No tariff reductions

3)      No clarity in framework or common ground

4)      Apart from ASEAN, BRICS, Blue Dot Network, & Build Back Better Initiatives already in place, this offers nothing new