U.S. plans $17 million to fight illegal fishing in the Pacific Islands

On Sept. 1, 2026, at the Pacific Islands Forum partners dialogue in Palau, Deputy Secretary Christopher Landau announced more than $150 million in U.S. support for Pacific Island countries. Inside that package is a Pacific Regional IUU Fishing Project: the State Department, working with Congress, plans to provide $17 million to counter illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing.

The money is aimed at legal help so national laws line up with regional IUU goals, certified training for compliance officers, and technology for monitoring that does not depend on more boats. It is capacity-building, not a new U.S. fishery.

IUU fishing undercuts legal fleets and coastal communities from the equatorial Pacific to the U.S. West Coast market. A pledged dollar is not a boarded vessel. Watch whether the training and monitoring actually show up. For the official list of announced projects, use the State Department release, not a trade recap.

This is a The Gillnet news desk summary, not a reprint.

Source: U.S. Department of State, Promoting Pacific Prosperity: U.S. Engagement at the Pacific Islands Forum, September 2026.