The Executive Yuan yesterday said that civilians are not allowed to set foot on Itu Aba Island (Taiping Island, 太平島) without permission from the Ministry of National Defense, even as a group of Taiwanese fishermen plan to sail close to the contested island in the South China Sea today.
“Given that Taiping Island is categorized as a restricted military area, fishermen are not permitted to enter the zone without the defense ministry’s authorization,” Executive Yuan spokesman Tung Chen-yuan (童振源) said.
However, if the fishermen are in need of emergency shelter or need to replenish their supplies on the island, the coast guard officers stationed there would provide assistance, Tung said.
Tung added that as the fishermen are not familiar with the area they are heading to, the Coast Guard Administration would order patrol vessels to stop the boats at a safe distance to ensure their safety at sea.
Tung made the remarks four days after a group of fishermen from Pingtung County on Wednesday embarked on a mission to sail to Taiwan-controlled Itu Aba in an effort to assert Taiwanese sovereignty over the island and safeguard their fishing rights.
Itu Aba is the largest naturally occurring land feature in the Spratly Islands (Nansha Islands, 南沙群島) and has been administered by Taiwan since 1956.
It is also claimed by the Philippines, Vietnam and China.
The fishermen’s actions were prompted by a ruling issued by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague on July 12, part of which stated that all of the high-tide features of the Spratlys, including Itu Aba, are legally “rocks” that do not have an exclusive economic zone or continental shelf.
The ministry released a statement later yesterday saying it respects the fishermen’s decision to sail to waters near Itu Aba.
“Nevertheless, as Itu Aba is an important military restricted zone, people who plan to visit the island must file an application with the Ministry of National Defense at least 45 days in advance... These measures are put in place to safeguard our national security,” the ministry said, calling for consideration and cooperation from the public.
Speaking at a news conference in Taipei yesterday morning, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Alicia Wang (王育敏) said that as the fishermen did not file an application to visit Itu Aba beforehand, they are planning to request permission to set foot on the island on grounds of “seeking emergency shelter.”
Lo Chiang-fei (羅強飛), who acts as a spokesman for the fishermen, said that a coast guard vessel approached the fishing boats at 3:14pm yesterday to protect the boats, which were 157 nautical miles (290km) from Itu Aba at the time.
Lo said that the fishermen would attempt to set foot on the island this afternoon.
‘A SERIOUS THREAT’: Japan has expressed grave concern over the Strait’s security over the years, which demonstrated Tokyo’s firm support for peace in the area, an official said China’s military drills around Taiwan are “incompatible” with peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Takeshi Iwaya said during a meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi (王毅) on Thursday. “Peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is important for the international community, including Japan,” Iwaya told Wang during a meeting on the sidelines of the ASEAN-related Foreign Ministers’ Meetings in Kuala Lumpur. “China’s large-scale military drills around Taiwan are incompatible with this,” a statement released by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday cited Iwaya as saying. The Foreign Ministers’ Meetings are a series of diplomatic
URBAN COMBAT: FIM-92 Stinger shoulder-fired missiles from the US made a rare public appearance during early-morning drills simulating an invasion of the Taipei MRT The ongoing Han Kuang military exercises entered their sixth day yesterday, simulating repelling enemy landings in Penghu County, setting up fortifications in Tainan, laying mines in waters in Kaohsiung and conducting urban combat drills in Taipei. At 5am in Penghu — part of the exercise’s first combat zone — participating units responded to a simulated rapid enemy landing on beaches, combining infantry as well as armored personnel. First Combat Zone Commander Chen Chun-yuan (陳俊源) led the combined armed troops utilizing a variety of weapons systems. Wang Keng-sheng (王鏗勝), the commander in charge of the Penghu Defense Command’s mechanized battalion, said he would give
The Philippines is working behind the scenes to enhance its defensive cooperation with Taiwan, the Washington Post said in a report published on Monday. “It would be hiding from the obvious to say that Taiwan’s security will not affect us,” Philippine Secretary of National Defense Gilbert Teodoro Jr told the paper in an interview on Thursday last week. Although there has been no formal change to the Philippines’ diplomatic stance on recognizing Taiwan, Manila is increasingly concerned about Chinese encroachment in the South China Sea, the report said. The number of Chinese vessels in the seas around the Philippines, as well as Chinese
‘REALISTIC’ APPROACH: The ministry said all the exercises were scenario-based and unscripted to better prepare personnel for real threats and unexpected developments The army’s 21st Artillery Command conducted a short-range air defense drill in Taoyuan yesterday as part of the Han Kuang exercises, using the indigenous Sky Sword II (陸射劍二) missile system for the first time in the exercises. The armed forces have been conducting a series of live-fire and defense drills across multiple regions, simulating responses to a full-scale assault by Chinese forces, the Ministry of National Defense said. The Sky Sword II missile system was rapidly deployed and combat-ready within 15 minutes to defend Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport in a simulated attack, the ministry said. A three-person crew completed setup and
RSS