The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said it plans to open a new base in New Taipei City next year, a move expected to strengthen the coast guard’s enforcement of maritime law, especially in disputed waters north of Taiwan.
The new base at the Port of Taipei is expected to begin operations in May next year, and will be the home port of the coast guard’s major vessels, it said.
The construction of the base comes amid disputes in waters surrounding the Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台) in the East China Sea and other areas northwest of Taiwan.
The base is expected to help the coast guard respond quickly to fishing disputes, foreign fishing vessels that trespass in Taiwanese waters.
The Diaoyutai Islands are claimed by Taiwan, Japan and China.
Tensions between Taiwan and Japan reached a high point in 2012 over competing territorial claims to the uninhabited island chain. Coast guard vessels from Taiwan and Japan sparred in waters near the disputed islands in October that year.
There have also been constant confrontations between Japan and China in the disputed area.
The base, covering an area of 5.96 hectares, with a harbor 638m long and nine meters deep, will provide docking for the coast guard’s 3,000-tonne patrol and rescue ship, the agency said.
The CGA’s other vessels would also be able to dock at the harbor inside the new base, a source said.
The base is part of CGA efforts to improve patrolling capabilities in waters around the nation. It already has a base in Kaohsiung and is planning to build another base in central Taiwan, the agency said.
The coast guard’s current base in the Port of Keelung will be moved to the Port of Taipei once the new facility is completed.
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