Canada marks expansion of coast guard cooperation with Japan port call

A Canadian Coast Guard vessel has for the first time made a port call in Japan in a move experts say will set the stage for greater cooperation not only with Tokyo but also other regional partners as Ottawa ramps up efforts to tackle illegal fishing in the Pacific.

The 83-meter-long icebreaker CCGS Sir Wilfrid Laurier arrived at the port of Yokohama on Monday after conducting a series of patrols to detect and deter illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing in the northern Pacific, a region critical to implementing Canada’s overarching Indo-Pacific Strategy.

The visit, which ends Thursday, has seen the ship’s crew exchange views with Japan Coast Guard representatives on their respective operations as they explore opportunities to ramp up cooperation and discuss joint initiatives.