P.M. BRIEFING : U.S., Korea Agree on Fishing Pact

U.S. and South Korean negotiators reached tentative agreement early today on a North Pacific fishing treaty, heading off a confrontation that could have led to a ban on South Korean fishery products.

Ed Wolfe, the State Department’s ambassador for oceans and fisheries, said the agreement will be initialed after both sides review the final text. Before it could go into force, both nations will have to sign it formally.

Under the agreement, U.S. enforcement officers will have “unrestricted authority” to board and inspect Korean drift net vessels to search for evidence of illegal fishing and all Korean drift net vessels will have to be equipped with satellite transponders by the 1990 fishing season, Wolfe said.