Taiwan coast guard deployed vessels in response to China operation
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- Taiwan coast guard announced on June 7 that it dispatched more than five vessels to assist with surveillance and respond to a Chinese operation in waters east of Taiwan.
- Chinese state media reported that maritime police from Fujian and Guangdong provinces conducted a “law enforcement operation” in response to Japan‑Philippines talks on maritime boundary delimitation.
- Four Chinese government vessels were detected leaving Xiamen port and sailing outside Taiwan’s restricted waters southwest of the island, arriving in the relevant waters on June 7.
- Taiwan asserted that China has no sovereign rights in the waters east of Taiwan and that the operation violates international law.
- A Chinese survey vessel joined a Chinese coast guard ship near Pratas Island in the South China Sea, which Taiwan described as the first observed coordinated provocation.
Why it matters: Taiwan’s deployment of more than five vessels bolsters its maritime security, deterring further Chinese incursions and signalling to Japan and the Philippines that Taiwan will defend its waters; the move raises diplomatic pressure on China’s territorial claims.
