Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) has said that a 17th round of fishery talks with Japan will most likely take place in 2011 after a one-year hiatus.
Association of East Asian Relations Secretary-General Huang Ming-lung said that Taipei and Tokyo have established a "tacit understanding" that the long-stalled bilateral fishery talks will be held in 2011.
Although Taiwan and Japan enjoy a stable relationship in terms of trade, there have been conflicts between the two countries over the East China Sea fishing grounds.
The bilateral fishery talks mechanism was initiated in 1996, but was suspended for three-and-a-half years in 2005 after the 15th round of talks in Tokyo.
The talks resumed in February 2009 in Taipei, during which the two sides agreed to set up an emergency communication channel and allow two organisations to act as contact windows on behalf of their respective governments.
In December 2009, the Fisheries Administration announced that Taiwan had forged an agreement with Japan to allow inspectors from both sides to conduct onboard inspections of each other's vessels.
[Source: Focus Taiwan]
