A Chinese freighter that allegedly snapped an undersea cable linking Taiwan proper to Penghu County is suspected of being owned by a Chinese state-run company and had docked at the ports of Kaohsiung and Keelung for three months using different names.
On Tuesday last week, the Togo-flagged freighter Hong Tai 58 (宏泰58號) and its Chinese crew were detained after the Taipei-Penghu No. 3 submarine cable was severed.
When the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) first attempted to detain the ship on grounds of possible sabotage, its crew said the ship’s name was Hong Tai 168, although the Automatic Identification System (AIS) displayed it as Hong Tai 58, the CGA said.
Photo courtesy of the Coast Guard Administration
The ship’s name would be verified by an investigation, the CGA said.
A review of AIS records by the Chinese-language Liberty Times (Taipei Times’ sister paper) showed that the freighter Hong Tai in September had visited the harbors of Kaohsiung, Anping, Keelung and South Korea’s Busan.
The freighter apparently turned off its AIS some time after that.
In January, the freighter re-engaged its AIS and appeared in waters near the Port of Kaohsiung and the device stayed on until 11am on Thursday, when the CGA brought the ship to the Port of Anping.
The records showed the Hong Tai had two International Maritime Organization identification numbers, which breaches the agency’s rules.
Also, the freighter’s Maritime Mobile Service Identities (MMSI) identification number had been used by the Tanzania-flagged Hong Da 8 (宏大8號) and China-flagged Jin Long 389 (金龍389號).
The Jin Long 389’s transponder has remained silent for years and the Hong Da 8, which is active, has operated with three MMSI numbers.
The records suggested that Hong Tai 58, Hong Da 8 and Jin Long 389 were the same freighter.
Chinese state-run China COSCO Shipping Corp (中國遠洋海運集團) and Guangdong-based Jin Long Maritime Transport (金龍航運) owned and operated the Jin Long 389, the records showed.
The Hong Tai 58 was linked through its MMSI numbers to six vessels.
Five of the ships sailed between Taiwan, China and South Korea in the past three months, each using their AIS, but intermittently.
The Hong Da 8 had entered the Port of Anping as recently as Feb. 2.
Experts yesterday said the CGA should be applauded for its swift response, but each cable-cutting incident was a blow to national security and government finance.
Taiwan must come up with a strategy to prevent further attempts to sabotage submarine cables, they added.
The government should track ships that have engaged in suspicious activities, and it should cooperate with friendly nations in maritime matters, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Puma Shen (沈伯洋) said.
Shared intelligence would enable the government to name the suspected ships and bring pressure on Beijing, he said.
Taiwan should strengthen its use of intelligence-gathering assets and coast guard patrol ships, and severely punish saboteurs to deter Chinese crews, Institute for National Defense and Security Research fellow Shen Ming-shih (沈明室) said.
The government should obtain more rotary and low-speed fixed-wing aircraft configured for maritime surveillance, and increase multi-agency collaboration efficiency, he said.
Additional reporting by CNA
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