The World - News from May 2, 1989

The State Department has told Taiwan that its relationship with the United States could suffer unless it curbs illegal drift-net fishing in the North Pacific. Ed Wolfe, ambassador for oceans and fisheries, said he delivered a note of protest and warned of the possible fallout if Taipei fails to negotiate a drift-net fishing agreement with the United States. American fishermen claim that vessels from Taiwan, South Korea and Japan use drift nets to illegally snare millions of tons of salmon under the guise of squid fishing. Drift nets can stretch 35 miles in length and cover more than 30,000 square miles of ocean per day.