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According to the Taiwanese government, the China Coast Guard seized a Taiwanese fishing boat near Kinmen Island, which is controlled by Taipei, sharply escalating tensions between the two countries.
Taiwan’s coast guard said the captain of the Dajinman 88, which was fishing northeast of Kinmen island, just off the Chinese coast, requested rescue on Tuesday night after the vessel was stopped and boarded for inspection by the Chinese coast guard.
A Taiwan Coast Guard vessel sent to provide emergency assistance to the fishing boat was intercepted by a Chinese Coast Guard vessel and instructed not to interfere.
“The pursuit was called off to de-escalate the conflict,” Taiwan’s coast guard said in a statement.
The Taiwanese fishing boat, its captain and five foreign workers on board were transferred to the nearby Chinese port of Weitou, it added.
Taiwan’s coast guard said the vessel had been operating close to China’s coast during a summer fishing ban imposed by Beijing.
The incident has further undermined Taiwan’s ability to ensure maritime security in the waters around Kinmen, which it has administered since the Republic of China government fled to Taiwan after its defeat in the Chinese Civil War in 1949.
It could also stok broader concerns about potential Chinese interference in shipping around Taiwan.
China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has threatened to attack if Taipei refuses to govern it indefinitely.
Beijing is stepping up pressure on Taiwan with ongoing military exercises near the Taiwan border.
Taipei also fears that China could seek to undermine its sovereignty by weakening its effective jurisdiction over the seas.
After two Chinese fishermen drowned while illegally fishing off the coast of Kinmen in February after being pursued by a Taiwan Coast Guard vessel, Beijing’s military boarded and inspected a Taiwanese tourist boat nearby.
Since then, Chinese coast guard vessels have begun regularly patrolling the waters around the islands that Taipei has declared off-limits – a ban that China has previously respected.
“They are now sailing through the restricted waters around Kinmen almost every day,” a Taiwanese national security official said last week.
During a military exercise held around Taiwan in May, China Coast Guard vessels simulated boarding and inspecting ships near Taiwan for the first time.
The move, along with Beijing’s regular patrols around Kinmen, has raised concerns in Taipei that Beijing is trying to undermine confidence in the safety of commercial shipping around Taiwan.
Analysts believe a blockade of Taiwan is one option Beijing has for weakening Taipei.
Taiwan is heavily dependent on energy and food imports and is one of the world’s largest exporters of technology hardware products, including high-end semiconductors. The waters around Taiwan are among the world’s busiest shipping lanes.
Taiwan’s government said it would seek talks with China over the fishing boats seized on Tuesday.
The ministry called on Beijing to “refrain from political manipulation that undermines cross-strait relations” and to release the vessel and its crew.
The Chinese government did not immediately comment on the incident.
