Taiwan Coast Guard and China Coast Guard 2503 trade messages by radio inside Taiwan’s EEZ

Taiwan’s Coast Guard Administration (CGA) continues to monitor China Coast Guard vessels off the island’s east coast after a radio exchange between a Taiwanese and a Chinese vessel inside Taiwan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The CGA made the incident public on Saturday, November 14, in a statement carried by the national news agency CNA. The Chinese side spoke of a “law enforcement patrol”, while Taipei answered that Beijing has no jurisdiction in the area and told the Chinese vessel to leave immediately.

The exchange took place on Thursday, November 12. Around 3:00 pm the CGA cutter Hualien spotted China Coast Guard vessel 2503 about 40 nautical miles south-east of Lanyu (Orchid Island), 14 nautical miles outside Taiwan’s restricted waters. The Chinese crew said over the radio that it was conducting a law enforcement patrol east of Taiwan, that Taiwan is part of China and that the People’s Republic of China is the only legitimate government representing all of China. In one of the messages recorded by the Taiwanese newspaper UDN, the Chinese vessel said “your so-called Republic of China does not exist, there is only one China in the world” and called on ships in the area to obey Chinese laws.

The Hualien replied over the radio that the Republic of China (Taiwan) is a sovereign, independent state and that the two sides are not subordinate to each other. “This is the EEZ of the Republic of China. You have no sovereign rights or jurisdiction in these waters, your action violates international conventions, and we ask you to leave immediately,” was the Taiwanese crew’s message. By 8:00 am on Saturday the 2503 had moved away and was about 67 nautical miles south-east of Hualien port.

The CGA calls the Chinese “patrols” “pseudo law enforcement, real expansion of jurisdiction” and places them within Beijing’s cognitive warfare. According to the agency, they violate the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), obstruct freedom of navigation and undermine peace and stability in the region. Taipei speaks of continuous “gray-zone” pressure and combined threats, and says it will keep vessels on patrol around the island. The CGA had responded in a similar way in late October, when it rejected the “patrols” of the Chinese formation led by the vessel Hushi east of the island. Public broadcaster PTS reports that the agency recorded 481 appearances of Chinese state vessels, together with coast guard ships, around Taiwan in July and August.

Taiwan’s eastern waters have been at the centre of tension in recent weeks. In their November 11 declaration the G7 foreign ministers described Chinese moves east of Taiwan as a threat to regional stability. In the air, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense had recorded 30 sorties by Chinese aircraft in the 24 hours to Friday, November 13. Its latest report, up to 6:00 am on Saturday, November 14, counts 10 aircraft sorties, eight ships of the Chinese Navy (PLAN) and three official vessels. Four of the sorties crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait and entered the central, south-western and eastern Air Defence Identification Zones (ADIZ).