Taiwan says it confronted and forced away 16 Chinese coastguard, research and fishing vessels that were involved in simultaneous “maritime harassment” operations, according to a statement from its coastguard on Sunday.
The coastguard said an “unusually large” number of Chinese boats took part in the coordinated activity around Taiwan’s main island and near Pratas, also known as Dongsha, a disputed island to the southwest. Four of the vessels were fishing boats. The coastguard described the campaign as “hybrid warfare”.
Taiwan accuses Beijing of altering the status quo
The coastguard said its vessels took swift, firm action to neutralise what it called threats. It accused Beijing of trying to change the existing situation in the Taiwan Strait unilaterally and of creating a false impression of jurisdiction. Some of the Chinese ships reportedly entered Taiwan’s restricted waters.
Dispute over sovereignty and a recent water cannon incident
Beijing claims Taiwan and Pratas as part of its territory and asserts jurisdiction over the surrounding waters, a position Taipei rejects. China has long threatened to use force to take control of Taiwan. On October 1, Taiwan’s coastguard fired water cannon at a Chinese recreational fishing vessel near Pratas island, which lies between Taiwan and mainland China and which Beijing claims.
Surge in Chinese maritime deployments around Taiwan
Taiwanese official data show that China deployed a record 244 coastguard, scientific research and other ships around the main island in July, compared with 58 in the same month last year. In the first 21 days of August, 152 vessels were detected, most of them from the Chinese Coastguard, with fishing boats and research vessels also involved. China also deploys warships around Taiwan almost every day, but those are counted separately.
