TAIPEI, June 6 – On Saturday, Taiwan reported that a Chinese coast guard ship and a survey vessel carried out the first coordinated operation intended to provoke Taiwan near strategically important islands in the South...
TAIPEI, June 6 – On Saturday, Taiwan reported that a Chinese coast guard ship and a survey vessel carried out the first coordinated operation intended to provoke Taiwan near strategically important islands in the South China Sea.
The Pratas Islands, controlled by Taiwan and located at the northern end of the South China Sea, are lightly defended and considered a new focus of China's military pressure, as Beijing seeks to assert its claims over the area.
Some security experts view these islands, which lie more than 400 km (250 miles) from Taiwan, as vulnerable to potential Chinese attacks due to their distance from the main island.
The Taiwan coast guard stated that on Saturday, a Chinese oceanographic survey ship approached the Pratas Islands, following a Chinese coast guard ship that came close the day before.
“This is the first recorded instance of Chinese coast guard and survey vessels working together to provoke Taiwan,” the statement noted.
China's Taiwan Affairs Office did not respond to a request for comment. China claims Taiwan and the Pratas Islands, which have no civilian population, as part of its territory. Taiwan's government, however, rejects these claims, insisting that only the people of Taiwan can determine their future.
“These actions are highly provocative. The PRC is a reckless bully causing issues throughout the region,” wrote Joseph Wu, the Secretary-General of Taiwan's National Security Council, on his X account, along with a map showing the paths of the two ships.
PRC stands for the People’s Republic of China.
The Chinese coast guard ship announced that it was conducting law enforcement operations and claimed that “Taiwan’s future lies in national reunification,” according to Taiwan’s coast guard, which deployed its own vessels in response.
The Taiwan ship replied, “Stop disrupting peace. You should return and work towards democracy – that is how you truly serve your country.”
According to the Taiwan coast guard, China is trying to create a “false illusion” of jurisdiction over the area, stating that “Taiwan’s maritime sovereignty allows no provocation.”