China Coast Guard appears at night in Dongsha Waters, suspected of testing maritime deployment; Taiwan Coast Guard Administration Vessel “Xunhu No.8” monitors and expels
At 00:50 today (16th), Taiwan Coast Guard Administration (TCGA) Dongsha Command detected China Coast Guard (CCG) vessel “3105” entering waters under Dongsha jurisdiction 25 nautical miles south of Dongsha Island.
TCGA immediately dispatched the mission vessel “Xunhu No.8”, which accelerated to the area to respond.
At 01:17, Xunhu No.8 arrived 19.7 nautical miles southeast of Dongsha, monitoring vessel “3105”. At the same time, another CCG vessel “3103” was detected 22 nautical miles south of Dongsha.
Xunhu No.8 monitored both vessels throughout the operation, sailing alongside them and broadcasting warnings to drive them away.
The closest distance during the escort operation was 0.8 nautical miles.
At 11:35 today, vessels “3103” and “3105” departed the Dongsha waters 29 nautical miles southwest of Dongsha, sailing south-southeast at 12 knots.
The two vessels appeared in Dongsha waters almost simultaneously and showed signs of coordinated patrol activity, while both kept Automatic Identification System (AIS) turned off, attempting to conceal navigation tracks.
It cannot be ruled out that they were testing Taiwan’s maritime deployment using Gray Zone Stategy during the Han Kuang military exercises, consuming TCGA enforcement capacity.
TCGA stated that in recent years CCG vessels have frequently appeared in Taiwan’s Dongsha and Kinmen waters, and have even conducted infringement and provocative actions against neighboring countries in the South China Sea and Indo-Pacific region, seriously affecting regional security and stability and undermining international mutual trust.
TCGA will continue deploying large patrol vessels to guard Dongsha waters and calls on countries with similar values to unite in protecting freedom, democracy, and peace in the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region.