TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Chinese government vessel activity east of the Taiwan Strait median line rose 83% in June from the previous month, as Beijing stepped up gray-zone operations around the country, according to the Coast Guard.
A Coast Guard official said China has expanded its use of coast guard, research, maritime surveillance, rescue, and other government vessels to assert what Taiwan describes as false jurisdictional claims over waters off its east coast, per Liberty Times. The official said the activity intensified after Japan and the Philippines began exclusive economic zone boundary talks on May 28.
Taiwan tracked Chinese government vessels east of the median line 30 times in May and 55 times in June. The two-month total represents an 88.9% increase from the same period last year, driven mainly by coast guard and research ships.
Including waters around Kinmen, Matsu, Dongsha, and other offshore islands, Taiwan recorded Chinese government vessels 200 times in May and 263 in June, a 32% increase, Liberty Times reported. The two-month total was an increase of 45.6% over the same period last year, while officials said incursions near Kinmen occurred almost weekly and around Dongsha about once a month.
Officials cited several recent incidents, including the Chinese coast guard vessel Daishan leading a group of ships that conducted political broadcasts near Orchid Island on June 1, per Mirror Media. On June 6, Chinese maritime authorities also questioned three commercial cargo ships transiting waters claimed by Taiwan, while a China coast guard vessel entered restricted waters east of the Port of Hualien on July 10.
Officials also reported increased activity by Chinese research vessels. They said the research ship Tongji illegally deployed scientific instruments off Eluanbi and east of Hualien in May and broadcast the message, “Relying on external forces to seek independence is a dead end,” toward Taiwan Coast Guard vessels.
Coast Guard officials said Chinese government vessels deliberately disable Automatic Identification System transponders as they approach Taiwan, effectively becoming “dark ships” that increase risks to maritime safety and strain Coast Guard operations, Mirror Media reported. They said Beijing is using gray-zone operations and cognitive warfare as part of a broader effort to isolate Taiwan and disrupt international shipping and supply lines.
