A Hong Kong-flagged cargo ship that had been docked at Taichung Port and which previously took part in Chinese military exercises departed from the port on Saturday, the Taiwan International Ports Corp’s Taichung branch said yesterday.
The statement came in response to a post on the social media platform X by Taiwan-based journalist Chris Horton that said the ship, the SCSC Fortune, had been docked at the port since Tuesday and questioned whether Taiwan has any rules regarding foreign civilian vessels that have participated in People’s Liberation Army (PLA) exercises.
Horton referenced a 2022 article by Chinese intelligence expert Rod Lee that showed at least six PLA assault boats hidden in the cargo hold of the SCSC Fortune.
Photo courtesy of Taipower via CNA
Under these circumstances, national security agencies should verify what the cargo ship is carrying, military expert Wang Chen-ming (王臻明) said yesterday.
MILITARY EXERCISE
National security agencies have warned that China might soon launch a “Joint Sword 2024C” military exercise, he said.
If China uses military exercises as a cover to launch a sudden attack, the Taichung Port could be occupied by the PLA, allowing PLA special ops forces to move towards the Ching Chuan Kang Air Base and undermine Taiwan’s air defense capabilities, he said.
The SCSC Fortune was built at Shanghai’s Wusong Shipyard in 2009 and is 117 meters long, 18 meters wide and a gross tonnage of 6,550. Even though it flies Hong Kong’s flag, the ship belongs to the Chinese shipping company COSCO Shipping Development.
MOVEMENTS
The ship docked at the port’s pier 14 at 9:20pm on Tuesday last week to unload machine parts and moved to pier 106 on Friday to unload cargo for a different client, the Port of Taichung said yesterday.
Te Lung Trading (德隆公司) was the unloading company and the Taichung Shipping Agency was the shipping agent, the port authority said.
The ship left the port at 3:29pm on Saturday and as of yesterday was anchored offshore, waiting for winds and waves to subside before departing, the Taichung port said.
According to Article 17 of the Commercial Port Act (商港法), the commercial port authority must give priority to ships carrying bulk cargoes of essential goods or industrial raw materials, the port said.
According to Article 19 of the same law, when a ship enters an international commercial port, the ship owner or their agent must fill out an arrival or departure notice and submit it to the Maritime and Port Bureau for verification, it said.
The SCSC Fortune was approved by the Maritime and Port Bureau, and the port arranged docking for unloading in accordance with regulations, the port said.
This is part of normal entry and exit operations, with no prolonged stays or abnormalities observed during the ship’s time in port, it added.
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