The Chinese aircraft carrier Shandong is on what is expected to be a long-range training exercise about 200 nautical miles (370km) east of Taiwan, and Taiwanese naval frigates are keeping close tabs on its every move, Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) said yesterday.
Since the Shandong departed from its base at Sanya Naval Port in China’s Hainan Province a few days ago, Taiwan’s armed forces have been closely monitoring its movements, Chiu told a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign and National Defense Committee.
Taiwanese forces tracked the Shandong early on Wednesday as it passed through the narrow Bashi Channel south of Taiwan and sailed into the west Pacific, where it is expected to carry out its first long-range training mission in that area, he said.
Photo courtesy of the Ministry of National Defense
The aircraft carrier was about 200 nautical miles east of Oluanipi on Taiwan’s southern tip, Chiu said.
While the ministry thinks the Shandong is there on a training mission, the military has not seen any aircraft taking off or landing on the aircraft carrier, as is expected during such exercises, he said.
The ministry does not rule out that the aircraft carrier might conduct live-fire drills near Taiwan and, as a precaution, the Taiwanese navy has dispatched several Cheng Kung-class and Lafayette-class frigates to closely monitor the Shandong, Chiu said.
Photo: REUTERS
The US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Nimitz is also in the west Pacific, about 400 nautical miles east of Taiwan, he said.
The US warship is not there specifically because of the Shandong, but its deployment is “somewhat related to that,” Chiu said, without elaborating.
According to a source who asked not to be named, the USS Nimitz is conducting joint anti-submarine drills with Japanese and South Korean forces in the west Pacific.
As of press time last night, China had not released any information about the deployment of the Shandong.
On Wednesday, China’s Fujian Maritime Safety Administration (MSA) issued a statement, saying that a three-day “joint cruise and patrol special operation” was being carried out in the Taiwan Strait, led by the Haixun 06, the largest Chinese maritime patrol ship deployed to the Strait.
Starting on Wednesday, inspectors on the patrol fleet are to conduct on-site checks on vessels and construction sites in the area to make sure the ships and construction projects are operating smoothly, the MSA said.
Asked about the possibility of the Chinese patrol conducting onboard inspections of Taiwanese commercial ships, Chiu did not give a direct answer, saying only that Beijing is attempting to eliminate the median line in the Taiwan Strait and create a false impression that the waters east of the line are part of its jurisdiction.
During yesterday’s legislative meeting, National Security Bureau Deputy Director-General Henry Ko (柯承亨) told lawmakers that the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) was carrying out its own patrols and had given clear directives to Taiwanese vessels.
The Maritime and Port Bureau said in a statement on Wednesday night that it had told shippers they should reject requests from the China Coast Guard to conduct onboard inspections and immediately notify the CGA for assistance.
China must be held responsible for all liability issues arising from its unilateral implementation of such a policy, the bureau said.
The Mainland Affairs Council yesterday said that no Taiwanese ships operating in the Taiwan Strait have so far been subject to inspections by the MSA.
The council and the Maritime and Port Bureau on late Wednesday night issued separate statements, saying they solemnly protested such a unilateral action and expressed strong disapproval to counterparts in China.
The council also said in the statement that Taiwan “would be forced to respond if China insists on engaging in unilateral and unreasonable moves to impede normal cross-strait exchanges.”
Deputy Minister of Mainland Affairs Council Jan Jyh-horng (詹志宏) yesterday further criticized it as “an uncivilized move.”
“The Chinese patrol ship was not originally tasked to enforce coast guard duties, and Beijing used very vague terms to list the ship’s duties,” Jan told a news briefing in Taipei. “This would inconvenience and even interfere with vessels operating in and around the Taiwan Strait. It is not a civilized move.”
“We have been informed by the Coast Guard Administration that so far none of our ships were inspected or harassed by the Chinese patrol ship,” Jan said, adding that the CGA is closely monitoring the patrol ship’s whereabouts.
Asked about the “countermeasures” that the government would take if China insisted on inspecting Taiwanese ships, Jan said: “Should something happen, we would review the situation and respond accordingly. All we are saying is that we would respond if China disrupted the operation of our ships.”
In the past, the China Coast Guard and the CGA would conduct onboard inspections on fishing boats operating at the Taiwan Strait to deter smuggling and human trafficking, Jan said.
“Strangely, they set neither targets nor goals for the operation this time, which is to last only three days,” Jan said. “This has never happened before, and they should return to normal coast guard practices.”
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
Taiwan would benefit from more integrated military strategies and deployments if the US and its allies treat the East China Sea, the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea as a “single theater of operations,” a Taiwanese military expert said yesterday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a researcher at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said he made the assessment after two Japanese military experts warned of emerging threats from China based on a drill conducted this month by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Eastern Theater Command. Japan Institute for National Fundamentals researcher Maki Nakagawa said the drill differed from the
A rally held by opposition parties yesterday demonstrates that Taiwan is a democratic country, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that if opposition parties really want to fight dictatorship, they should fight it on Tiananmen Square in Beijing. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) held a protest with the theme “against green communists and dictatorship,” and was joined by the Taiwan People’s Party. Lai said the opposition parties are against what they called the “green communists,” but do not fight against the “Chinese communists,” adding that if they really want to fight dictatorship, they should go to the right place and face
RSS