A multi-agency humanitarian rescue drill was held yesterday in waters near Itu Aba Island (Taiping Island, 太平島) in the South China Sea, the first of its kind since President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) spoke of the government’s intention to turn the island into a base for humanitarian assistance.
Three aircraft and eight vessels took part in the exercise, code-named “Nanyuan No. 1,” or “Southern Aid,” the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said.
CGA Director-General Lee Chung-wei (李仲威) oversaw the drill, with reporters from several international wire services and Japanese media outlets invited to cover the proceedings, the agency said.
Photo: Sam Yeh, AFP
The drill simulated a fire on the deck of a foreign cargo ship, with injured crewmembers abandoning ship near Itu Aba.
The National Search and Rescue Center dispatched Republic of China (ROC) Navy and CGA vessels to the scene, where they plucked the stand-ins from the sea and transported them to the island.
The “victims” were taken to the Itu Aba hospital where medical staff simulated treatment scenarios with assistance from colleagues in Taiwan proper via a video link.
The crewmembers were then transported to a hospital in Pingtung County on an ROC Air Force C-130.
Ships that participated in the drill included the Kaohsiung, a 3,000-tonne coast guard vessel, and the Panshi, a fast combat-support ship that can provide medical services on par with an army field hospital.
The drill took place following an interview last month in which Tsai spoke of government plans for Itu Aba.
Tsai told the Yomiuri Shimbun that Taiwan had begun to improve facilities on the island with the hope of building it into a base for humanitarian assistance and scientific research.
Other nations are welcome to cooperate with Taiwan in this endeavor, she said.
Since the CGA took over responsibility for the Spratly Islands (Nansha Islands, 南沙群島) and Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島) to the north from the Marine Corps in 2000, it has assisted 100 people in 70 emergencies in South China Sea waters, the CGA said.
Itu Aba is the largest of the naturally occurring islands in the Spratly chain.
The CGA said it would continue to step up rescue cooperations with peripheral countries to implement the policy of turning Itu Aba into a humanitarian rescue center, and supply and logistics base.
Six countries — Taiwan, China, Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines and Brune — claim sovereignty over all or parts of the South China Sea.
Foreign reporters were invited to Itu Aba for the first time in March during the administration of former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) to buttress Taiwan’s case that it is an “island” and not just a “rock” as the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague has said.
“China is preparing to invade Taiwan,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an exclusive interview with British media channel Sky News for a special report titled, “Is Taiwan ready for a Chinese invasion?” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today in a statement. The 25-minute-long special report by Helen Ann-Smith released yesterday saw Sky News travel to Penghu, Taoyuan and Taipei to discuss the possibility of a Chinese invasion and how Taiwan is preparing for an attack. The film observed emergency response drills, interviewed baseball fans at the Taipei Dome on their views of US President
ECONOMIC BENEFITS: The imports from Belize would replace those from Honduras, whose shrimp exports have dropped 67 percent since cutting ties in 2023 Maintaining ties with Taiwan has economic benefits, Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials said yesterday, citing the approval of frozen whiteleg shrimp imports from Belize by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as an example. The FDA on Wednesday approved the tariff-free imports from Belize after the whiteleg shrimp passed the Systematic Inspection of Imported Food, which would continue to boost mutual trade, the ministry said. Taiwan’s annual consumption of whiteleg shrimps stands at 30,000 tonnes, far exceeding domestic production, the ministry said. Taiwan used to fill the gap by importing shrimps from Honduras, but purchases slumped after Tegucigalpa severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan
The Executive Yuan yesterday approved a southwestern extension of the Sanying MRT Line from New Taipei to Bade District (八德) in Taoyuan, with a goal of starting construction by late 2026. The 4.03-kilometer extension, featuring three new stations, will run from the current terminus at Yingtao Fude Station (LB12) in New Taipei City to Dannan Station (LB14), where it will connect with Taoyuan’s Green Line, New Taipei City Metro Corp said in a statement. This extension will follow the completion of core Sanying Line, a 14.29-kilometer medium-capacity system linking Tucheng (土城), Sansia (三峽)
CARGO LOSS: About 50 containers at the stern of the ‘Ever Lunar’ cargo ship went overboard, prompting the temporary closure of the port and disrupting operations Evergreen Marine Corp, Taiwan’s largest container shipper, yesterday said that all crew members aboard the Ever Lunar (長月) were safe after dozens of containers fell overboard off the coast of Peru the previous day. The incident occurred at 9:40am on Friday as the Ever Lunar was anchored and waiting to enter the Port of Callao when it suddenly experienced severe rolling, Evergreen said in a statement. The rolling, which caused the containers to fall, might have been caused by factors including a tsunami triggered by an earthquake in Russia, poor winter sea conditions in South America or a sudden influx of waves,
RSS