The Ministry of National Defense yesterday downplayed the presence of a US Navy ship in Kaohsiung, saying it is a research vessel and urged people to stop speculating about its mission or how it relates to US policy.
The Thomas G. Thompson dropped anchor in the Port of Kaohsiung on Monday morning to replenish supplies and for crew replacement, Taiwan International Ports Corp (TIPC, 台灣港務) said in a statement.
The ship is owned by the Office of Naval Research.
Photo: CNA
It has visited Taiwan four times for resupply since its maiden voyage in April, the company said.
During a question-and-answer session at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators Jason Hsu (許毓仁) and Lin Li-chan (林麗蟬) asked Minister of National Defense Yen De-fa (嚴德發) if the boat’s presence is connected to the US’ National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2019 or a US military show of force in the region.
The ministry monitors every vessel that enters the nation’s territorial waters, Yen said, adding that while the Thomas G. Thompson is nominally a US Navy vessel, it is operated by the University of Washington and exclusively for academic research.
The ship has no other known relationship with the US military and there is no reason to interpret its presence in Kaohsiung as related in any way to US legislation or a show of force in the South China Sea or waters near Taiwan, he said.
Earlier in the day, ministry spokesman Major General Chen Chung-chi (陳中吉) said the vessel’s mission is to exchange scientific data with National Taiwan University (NTU) oceanographers and atmospheric researchers.
The ship has been gathering data on regional oceanic currents in connection with an academic program that NTU announced last year on its Web site, he said.
“Public speculation [over the matter] is misplaced. This is a pure and simple scientific research mission,” he said.
However, retired navy captain Lu Li-shih (呂禮詩) said that the timing of the US vessel’s appearance in Taiwanese waters is of interest.
The ship is equipped with remote-operated vessels and autonomous underwater vehicles for conducting oceanographical surveys, which are essential for military navigation through a maritime region, said Lu, who is an instructor at the Republic of China Naval Academy in Kaohsiung.
The ship, which is heading to Fremantle, Australia, could have stopped in the Philippines instead of Kaohsiung for supplies, Lu said, adding that the seas near Kaohsiung are strategically important for submarine and anti-submarine warfare.
The last time the Thomas G. Thompson, which has a gross tonnage of 3,095, anchored off Kaohsiung was from May 3 to May 17, the TIPC said.
The ship is expected to depart for Australia at 6am tomorrow, it said.
Port of Kaohsiung workers said they saw the crew unloading the vessel’s radar for disassembly and storage in a cargo container.
Additional reporting by CNA
US PUBLICATION: The results indicated a change in attitude after a 2023 survey showed 55 percent supported full-scale war to achieve unification, the report said More than half of Chinese were against the use of force to unify with Taiwan under any circumstances, a survey conducted by the Atlanta, Georgia-based Carter Center and Emory University found. The survey results, which were released on Wednesday in a report titled “Sovereignty, Security, & US-China Relations: Chinese Public Opinion,” showed that 55.1 percent of respondents agreed or somewhat agreed that “the Taiwan problem should not be resolved using force under any circumstances,” while 24.5 percent “strongly” or “somewhat” disagreed with the statement. The results indicated a change in attitude after a survey published in “Assessing Public Support for (Non)Peaceful Unification
The CIA has a message for Chinese government officials worried about their place in Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) government: Come work with us. The agency released two Mandarin-language videos on social media on Thursday inviting disgruntled officials to contact the CIA. The recruitment videos posted on YouTube and X racked up more than 5 million views combined in their first day. The outreach comes as CIA Director John Ratcliffe has vowed to boost the agency’s use of intelligence from human sources and its focus on China, which has recently targeted US officials with its own espionage operations. The videos are “aimed at
SHIFT: Taiwan’s better-than-expected first-quarter GDP and signs of weakness in the US have driven global capital back to emerging markets, the central bank head said The central bank yesterday blamed market speculation for the steep rise in the local currency, and urged exporters and financial institutions to stay calm and stop panic sell-offs to avoid hurting their own profitability. The nation’s top monetary policymaker said that it would step in, if necessary, to maintain order and stability in the foreign exchange market. The remarks came as the NT dollar yesterday closed up NT$0.919 to NT$30.145 against the US dollar in Taipei trading, after rising as high as NT$29.59 in intraday trading. The local currency has surged 5.85 percent against the greenback over the past two sessions, central
‘MISGUIDED EDICT’: Two US representatives warned that Somalia’s passport move could result in severe retaliatory consequences and urged it to reverse its decision Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) has ordered that a special project be launched to counter China’s “legal warfare” distorting UN Resolution 2758, a foreign affairs official said yesterday. Somalia’s Civil Aviation Authority on Wednesday cited UN Resolution 2758 and Mogadishu’s compliance with the “one China” principle as it banned people from entering or transiting in the African nation using Taiwanese passports or other Taiwanese travel documents. The International Air Transport Association’s system shows that Taiwanese passport holders cannot enter Somalia or transit there. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) protested the move and warned Taiwanese against traveling to Somalia or Somaliland
RSS