The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday urged Japan to adopt a “rational” attitude about a Taiwanese protest boat that sailed into waters near the disputed Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台) earlier in the day.
“The voyage was a voluntary action by private citizens and should in no way affect Taiwan-Japan fishery talks,” said Su Chii-cherng (蘇啟誠), the deputy director-general of the ministry’s Department of East Asian and Pacific Affairs.
The boat, a fishing vessel chartered from Shenao Port (深澳漁港) in New Taipei City (新北市) and carrying seven crew and activists, set out early yesterday morning for the Diaoyutais, known as the Senkakus in Japan.
Photo: Taiwanese Coast Guard Administration / Reuters
The Diaoyutais lie in the East China Sea, about 120 nautical miles (220km) northeast of Taiwan, and are contested by Taiwan, Japan and China.
The activists are members of the Taipei-based Chinese Association for Protecting the Diaoyutais and said they had intended to enshrine a statute of Matsu, the Chinese goddess of the sea, on the uninhabited chain to protect Taiwanese seafarers and fishermen operating in the region and assert Taiwan’s sovereignty over the islands.
Despite being escorted by four Taiwanese Coast Guard Administration (CGA) vessels, the activists’ attempt to reach the islands was unsuccessful, although they managed to get as close as 16 nautical miles southwest of the islands.
Photo: CNA
Eight Japanese Coast Guard vessels blocked the Taiwanese boat’s progress when it reached 28 nautical miles southwest of the Diaoyutais at 9:40am, using tactics such as zig-zagging, creating wash and discharging black smoke, CGA officials said.
At 10:32am, the Japanese coast guard ships began firing water cannons at the fishing boat, they said. The CGA reacted by returning water cannon fire at the Japanese ships.
In addition, loudspeakers and LED display boards were used to send warning messages telling the Japanese to stop blocking the Taiwanese boat because “the Diaoyutai Islands are part of ROC [Republic of China] territory,” the officials said.
Also during the escort operation, Taiwan warned three Chinese marine surveillance ships that were spotted 20 nautical miles southwest of the Diaoyutais to leave the area, the officials said.
The action was aimed at avoiding the possibility of creating the false impression that Taipei was collaborating with Beijing over the territorial spat, the officials said.
Su yesterday said that Tokyo has expressed its concerns to the ministry over the incident.
“We have in turn reaffirmed our stance on the issue,” Su said.
Insisting that the Diaoyutais are an inherent part of the ROC’s territory, Su said that the waters surrounding the island chain are traditional Taiwanese fishing grounds.
“Our sovereignty over the Diaoyutais and their surrounding waters is indisputable,” Su said.
Su added that all those aboard the ship possessed the proper licenses and had applied to make the voyage in accordance with regulations.
“Our people are allowed to conduct fishing operations in the region,” Su said, adding that the CGA’s deployment of four escort ships was mainly to protect the safety of ROC citizens.
He urged Japan to adopt a “rational and peaceful” attitude in handling the incident.
Asked whether the dispute would hurt planned bilateral fisheries talks, Su said the Japanese had hinted at such a possibility.
“Both sides have been in talks to determine a timeline for a second preparatory meeting ahead of a new round of fishery talks,” Su said, adding that the government does not want the protest to affect negotiations.
“We look forward to the second preparatory meeting being held either late this month or in mid-February as originally scheduled,” Su added.
Taipei and Tokyo have already held 16 rounds of talks on fishing rights in the Diaoyutai waters. A preparatory meeting was held last year to pave the way for a long-stalled 17th round of talks.
The long-simmering row over the island chain came to a head in September last year after the Japanese government bought three of the islets from their private owner.
Chinese patrol ships, utility aircraft and jet fighters have since been spotted around the disputed island cluster on several occasions.
In August last year, President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) unveiled an East China Sea peace initiative based on the concept of “sovereignty cannot be shared yet resources can be divided.”
The initiative calls for all parties to refrain from provocation, shelve their differences, maintain dialogue, observe international law and resolve disputes through peaceful means.
Ma also called for all sides to seek consensus on a code of conduct for the East China Sea and to establish a mechanism to explore and develop resources in the region.
LONG FLIGHT: The jets would be flown by US pilots, with Taiwanese copilots in the two-seat F-16D variant to help familiarize them with the aircraft, the source said The US is expected to fly 10 Lockheed Martin F-16C/D Block 70/72 jets to Taiwan over the coming months to fulfill a long-awaited order of 66 aircraft, a defense official said yesterday. Word that the first batch of the jets would be delivered soon was welcome news to Taiwan, which has become concerned about delays in the delivery of US arms amid rising military tensions with China. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official said the initial tranche of the nation’s F-16s are rolling off assembly lines in the US and would be flown under their own power to Taiwan by way
FREEDOM OF NAVIGATION: The UK would continue to reinforce ties with Taiwan ‘in a wide range of areas’ as a part of a ‘strong unofficial relationship,’ a paper said The UK plans to conduct more freedom of navigation operations in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, British Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs David Lammy told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. British Member of Parliament Desmond Swayne said that the Royal Navy’s HMS Spey had passed through the Taiwan Strait “in pursuit of vital international freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.” Swayne asked Lammy whether he agreed that it was “proper and lawful” to do so, and if the UK would continue to carry out similar operations. Lammy replied “yes” to both questions. The
‘OF COURSE A COUNTRY’: The president outlined that Taiwan has all the necessary features of a nation, including citizens, land, government and sovereignty President William Lai (賴清德) discussed the meaning of “nation” during a speech in New Taipei City last night, emphasizing that Taiwan is a country as he condemned China’s misinterpretation of UN Resolution 2758. The speech was the first in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan. It is the responsibility of Taiwanese citizens to stand united to defend their national sovereignty, democracy, liberty, way of life and the future of the next generation, Lai said. This is the most important legacy the people of this era could pass on to future generations, he said. Lai went on to discuss
MISSION: The Indo-Pacific region is ‘the priority theater,’ where the task of deterrence extends across the entire region, including Taiwan, the US Pacific Fleet commander said The US Navy’s “mission of deterrence” in the Indo-Pacific theater applies to Taiwan, Pacific Fleet Commander Admiral Stephen Koehler told the South China Sea Conference on Tuesday. The conference, organized by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), is an international platform for senior officials and experts from countries with security interests in the region. “The Pacific Fleet’s mission is to deter aggression across the Western Pacific, together with our allies and partners, and to prevail in combat if necessary, Koehler said in the event’s keynote speech. “That mission of deterrence applies regionwide — including the South China Sea and Taiwan,” he
RSS