Taiwan yesterday condemned the recent increase in Chinese coast guard-escorted fishing vessels operating illegally in waters around the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea.
Unusually large groupings of Chinese fishing vessels began to appear around the islands on Feb. 15, when at least six motherships and 29 smaller boats were sighted, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said in a news release.
While CGA vessels were dispatched to expel the Chinese boats, Chinese coast guard ships trespassed into Taiwan’s restricted waters and unsuccessfully attempted to interfere, the CGA said.
Photo courtesy of the Coast Guard Administration via CNA
Due to the provocation, the CGA initiated an operation to increase patrols around the Dongsha Islands, it added.
On Feb. 26, the CGA stopped and boarded the Chinese fishing vessel Yueraoyu 23588, and two Chinese coast guard vessels attempted to intervene, it said.
On Tuesday last week, the CGA stopped another Chinese vessel and was again interrupted by the Chinese coast guard, it added.
Similar incidents also occurred between Wednesday last week and Tuesday, when Chinese coast guard vessels lingered near the restricted waters around the Dongsha Islands, the CGA said.
The CGA condemned the actions of the Chinese coast guard, saying the interference was an act of provocation against Taiwan’s sovereignty.
The Dongsha Atoll National Park is Taiwan’s first marine national park and there are clear regulations banning commercial and private fishing in the area, it said.
Taiwan’s conservation efforts in the area have resulted in its marine population being rich and abundant, it said.
By comparison, China has heavily depleted its ocean resources, which is why Chinese fishers are trespassing into Taiwan’s waters to fish illegally, it added.
In observation of the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Taiwan would continue to combat illegal fishing and activities that seek to ruin the sustainability of marine life, it said.
Having its coast guard chaperone its vessels to engage in illegal fishing shows a complete disregard for ocean sustainability, the CGA said.
The Chinese coast guard’s actions not only heightened cross-strait tension, but also disrupted peace, it said, vowing to continue monitoring the activities of the Chinese coast guard to defend Taiwan’s sovereignty and ensure the sustainability of marine resources.
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
President William Lai (賴清德) has appointed former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) to attend the late Pope Francis’ funeral at the Vatican City on Saturday on his behalf, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today. The Holy See announced Francis’ funeral would take place on Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square. The ministry expressed condolences over Francis’ passing and said that Chen would represent Taiwan at the funeral and offer condolences in person. Taiwan and the Vatican have a long-standing and close diplomatic relationship, the ministry said. Both sides agreed to have Chen represent Taiwan at the funeral, given his Catholic identity and
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
RSS