The Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) activities in the South China Sea have made Itu Aba Island (Taiping Island, 太平島) too dangerous for President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) to visit, National Security Bureau (NSB) Director-General Tsai Ming-yen (蔡明彥) told lawmakers yesterday.
The national security head was responding to remarks by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lai Shyh-bao (賴士葆) criticizing the president for not visiting the island, as former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) did before the end of his eight-year tenure.
The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) operates a garrison on Itu Aba, the largest among the Spratly Islands (Nansha Islands, 南沙群島), some of which Vietnam, China, Brunei, Malaysia and the Philippines also claim.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
Beijing’s policy to tail or hail every non-Chinese ship and aircraft detected transiting through disputed waters it lays claim to is well-documented by the armed forces of Taiwan, the US and Australia, Tsai Ming-yen said.
Taiwanese vessels — including coast guard supply ships and US Air Force C-130s — have reported being shadowed by Chinese military aircraft and warships, he said, adding that PLA activities are highly frequent in the South China Sea.
China on average operates six to 20 aircraft and a score of navy and coast guard ships a day in these waters, which poses a security risk to the nation’s head of state if she were to travel to Itu Aba, he said.
Asked to elaborate on the nation’s contingency plans for defending the islet, Tsai Ming-yen said that the navy and coast guard are prepared to deal with various forms of attacks on Itu Aba.
The island’s 200 coast guard personnel have received new weapons and equipment, including artillery for their defense, and conduct three to four weapons exercises each year, he said.
There are no plans to increase the number of coast guard on Itu Aba, as the current force is enough for conducting maritime law enforcement missions, CGA Director-General Chou Mei-wu (周美伍) said.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) said the KMT’s demand that the president visit Itu Aba could escalate tensions in the Indo-Pacific region.
It is peculiar that while the KMT repeatedly vows to defend the nation’s sovereignty, it remains silent over Chinese interference in Taiwanese territories and continues to mouth Beijing’s propaganda about Itu Aba, she said.
The KMT is likely being pressured by another entity and its motives are open to question, Wu said.
KMT Legislator Hsu Chiao-hsin (徐巧芯) said the party’s demand for the president to visit the island stems from a desire to “emphasize the Republic of China’s sovereignty and promote a message of peace to the world.”
Asked about drone deployment in Taiwanese territories near China, Chou told lawmakers that uncrewed aerial vehicles were not available to aid in the rescue of a Chinese boat that capsized off Kinmen County on Thursday last week.
The coast guard units assigned to Kinmen and Lienchiang counties do not utilize drones due to the restricted and sensitive airspace in their area of responsibility, he said.
The CGA believes that more operational experience is needed before these systems can be deployed in the region, he added.
Asked about the new Hong Kong security law passed earlier this week, Tsai Ming-yen urged the public to avoid traveling or transiting through the Chinese territory, as the legislation gives authorities broad powers to imprison foreign nationals.
The law gives a broad definition to the crimes of espionage, treason and subversion, with stiff penalties ranging from 20 years to life in prison, he said.
Taiwanese who must visit Hong Kong are advised to be aware that any criticism directed at the Chinese government they made on social media could be used against them by the territory’s authorities, he said.
EXPRESSING GRATITUDE: Without its Taiwanese partners which are ‘working around the clock,’ Nvidia could not meet AI demand, CEO Jensen Huang said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and US-based artificial intelligence (AI) chip designer Nvidia Corp have partnered with each other on silicon photonics development, Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) said. Speaking with reporters after he met with TSMC chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) in Taipei on Friday, Huang said his company was working with the world’s largest contract chipmaker on silicon photonics, but admitted it was unlikely for the cooperation to yield results any time soon, and both sides would need several years to achieve concrete outcomes. To have a stake in the silicon photonics supply chain, TSMC and
IDENTITY: Compared with other platforms, TikTok’s algorithm pushes a ‘disproportionately high ratio’ of pro-China content, a study has found Young Taiwanese are increasingly consuming Chinese content on TikTok, which is changing their views on identity and making them less resistant toward China, researchers and politicians were cited as saying by foreign media. Asked to suggest the best survival strategy for a small country facing a powerful neighbor, students at National Chia-Yi Girls’ Senior High School said “Taiwan must do everything to avoid provoking China into attacking it,” the Financial Times wrote on Friday. Young Taiwanese between the ages of 20 and 24 in the past were the group who most strongly espoused a Taiwanese identity, but that is no longer
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake and several aftershocks battered southern Taiwan early this morning, causing houses and roads to collapse and leaving dozens injured and 50 people isolated in their village. A total of 26 people were reported injured and sent to hospitals due to the earthquake as of late this morning, according to the latest Ministry of Health and Welfare figures. In Sising Village (西興) of Chiayi County's Dapu Township (大埔), the location of the quake's epicenter, severe damage was seen and roads entering the village were blocked, isolating about 50 villagers. Another eight people who were originally trapped inside buildings in Tainan
SHARED VALUES: The US, Taiwan and other allies hope to maintain the cross-strait ‘status quo’ to foster regional prosperity and growth, the former US vice president said Former US vice president Mike Pence yesterday vowed to continue to support US-Taiwan relations, and to defend the security and interests of both countries and the free world. At a meeting with President William Lai (賴清德) at the Presidential Office in Taipei, Pence said that the US and Taiwan enjoy strong and continued friendship based on the shared values of freedom, the rule of law and respect for human rights. Such foundations exceed limitations imposed by geography and culture, said Pence, who is visiting Taiwan for the first time. The US and Taiwan have shared interests, and Americans are increasingly concerned about China’s
RSS