Our country first hosted the scientific coordination mechanism meeting of the "Preventing Unregulated High Seas Fisheries in the Central Arctic Ocean Agreement".

The 4th Scientific Coordination Mechanism Meeting on Preventing Unregulated High Seas Fisheries in the Central Arctic Ocean Agreement was held in Hangzhou, Zhejiang from March 24th to 27th, 2026. This is the first time that China has hosted this mechanism meeting, marking China's more proactive and constructive role in Arctic governance and international marine cooperation. The Agreement is the only international mechanism in which China has the right to make decisions through consultation and consensus in the Arctic region. It fills the governance gap in high seas fisheries in the central Arctic Ocean, and is of milestone significance in maintaining the ecological security of the central Arctic Ocean and promoting the scientific conservation and sustainable use of biological resources. This is the first time that China has hosted a meeting related to the Agreement, and it is also an important meeting in the field of Arctic governance that China has hosted since the 40th Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting in 2017. During this meeting, participants engaged in in-depth discussions and negotiations on key topics such as joint monitoring implementation, data sharing, scientific research collaboration, and indigenous knowledge, reaching cooperation consensus. China reported scientific new discoveries about fish populations from the 15th Arctic Ocean expedition, actively promoting the implementation of joint scientific monitoring plans, participating in the formulation of standard methods for investigations on fish, marine mammals and birds, other organisms, ecological connections, etc., and pushing the meeting to scientifically address exploratory fishing management related scientific issues, making active efforts to improve the conservation system for biological resources in the central Arctic Ocean.