TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A Taiwanese fishing vessel operating in the waters around Kinmen was seized by the Chinese coast guard on Tuesday (July 2).

Taiwan’s Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said via a press release that at 9.14 p.m. on Tuesday, a vessel registered in Penghu named Da Jin Man No. 88 (大進滿88) was boarded by the China coast guard and then seized, per CNA. The ship was reportedly boarded about 20 km from a port in Fujian Province’s Jinjiang County in response to a summer fishing ban. 

The fishing vessel was about 10 km away from the province’s shores at the time of interception, according to CGA. The CGA said there were four Chinese coast guard ships at the time the Taiwanese fishing boat was boarded by China.

Taiwan’s Coast Guard said it initially followed the fishing boat, but pulled back to prevent an escalation between themselves and the Chinese. A senior Taiwan official told Reuters that China will be urged to release the fishermen who were working on the vessel as soon as possible.

Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said it will handle any future developments with the Fisheries Agency.