-
By Ben Blanchard /
Reuters, TAIPEI
China Coast Guard (CCG) ships operating around Taiwan over the past few days have been “harassing” commercial shipping by asking them for information about their point of origin and destination and claiming jurisdiction, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said yesterday.
Beijing was angered after Japan and the Philippines last month said they would begin formal talks on their exclusive economic zones (EEZ), viewing that as involving waters off Taiwan.
Late on Saturday, Chinese state media reported ships had been sent to carry out a “special maritime traffic law-enforcement operation” in the waters east of Taiwan in response to the Japanese and Philippine announcement.
Photo from National Security Council Secretary-General Joseph Wu’s X page
In a statement, the CGA said that since Sunday, the Chinese ships had broadcast messages to three passing commercial ships asking for information such as their ports of departure and destination.
Taiwanese ships broadcast back that these were Taiwanese waters in which China had no jurisdiction, and the Chinese vessels should “not harass ships,” the CGA said.
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The CGA said it also broadcast to the passing merchant ships that they should pay no heed to the inquiries of the Chinese vessels.
Ships passing through Taiwan’s waters maintained normal navigation and were not boarded, inspected, approached or interfered with by the Chinese government vessels, it added.
National Security Council Secretary-General Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) posted a map on X showing the location of China Coast Guard, navy and government ships operating in waters east of Taiwan yesterday.
“China’s Hai Xun & CG vessels are harassing commercial ships in Taiwan’s EEZ to fabricate a facade of PRC [People’s Republic of China] jurisdiction,” he wrote. “This expansionism is a major escalation of regional tension. We call on all commercial vessels in the area to ignore CCG radio calls.”
The Hai Xun are a fleet of large maritime patrol, hydrographic survey and search-and-rescue vessels operated by the Chinese Maritime Safety Administration.
Responding to the escalating Chinese coast guard activity, a US Department of State spokesperson said in a statement that the US expects differences between China and Taiwan to be resolved by peaceful means and “free from coercion.”
“We urge Beijing to cease its military, diplomatic and economic pressure against Taiwan and instead engage in meaningful dialogue with the elected leadership,” the spokesperson added.
Additional reporting by Kayleigh Madjar
