South Korea was cleared from the U.S. preliminary list of countries violating fishing rules in Antarctica.

The Korean Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said Wednesday that the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration canceled its preliminary designation of Korea as a country engaging in illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing four months after the warning was issued.

In September, the U.S authority made a preliminary decision to designate Korea as an IUU fishing nation, citing that two Korean fishing boats failed to comply with regulations while fishing in Antarctica in 2017. It had demanded the Korean government to employ tougher regulations.

A confirmed IUU country is banned from shipping fishery goods to the U.S.

By Yang Yeon-ho and Cho Jeehyun

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