‘Kunlun’ has been detained by Thai officials. Credit: CCAMLR
The vessel has a long history of IUU fishing in the Southern Ocean and is the subject of an INTERPOL Purple Notice seeking information on the individuals and networks that own, operate and profit from the actions of the vessel.
The Kunlun attempted to avoid detection by entering the Thai port under the name Taishan and claiming to be flagged to Indonesia.
Australian Minister for Immigration and Border Protection Peter Dutton said that Australia works with international partners, including through the Regional Plan of Action with south-east Asian countries, to combat IUU fishing.
“I would like to commend the officers from ACBPS who boarded the vessel and gathered information which has led to the ship being detained,” Mr Dutton said.
“Australia was able to alert south-east Asian nations to the potential arrival of Kunlun into their ports. It is now being detained and Thai officials are gathering information as part of an investigation into the vessel’s nationality and activities in the region. This is an excellent example of interagency and international cooperation achieving tangible results.”
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Agriculture Senator Richard Colbeck said that the Australian Government will also continue to provide support in the investigation into links between Spanish fishing companies and IUU vessels found fishing in the area of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources.
