News
10 coast guard officials reprimanded over Chinese boat incursion
The Coast Guard Administration admitted negligence and reprimanded 10 personnel over an incident in which a Chinese speedboat illegally reached the Tamsui River mouth over the weekend.
The CGA says after a thorough review, the problem was found to be not in the monitoring system but in human negligence. The administration faced heavy criticism for failing to stop a Chinese national who allegedly drove a speedboat into a harbour near the mouth of the Tamsui River on Sunday. The CGA says radar operators mistakenly identified the speedboat as a Taiwanese fishing vessel returning to its home port of Tamsui. Officials say the 10 coast guard personnel received reprimands ranging from warnings to demerits.
Meanwhile, the Chinese government said today that a Chinese man who sailed a small boat into a strategic river mouth in Taiwan was acting on his own. Chen Binhua, the spokesperson for China's Taiwan Affairs Office, also said this is purely his personal behaviour and that he would be punished after his return to China.
Taiwanese authorities have detained the man, who has been identified as a 60-year-old former Chinese naval officer surnamed Ruan. His reported military background raised suspicion that the voyage might have been an attempt by China to test Taiwan’s detection and defence capabilities.
Chen said today that Taiwan's ruling DPP does not need to make a fuss and engage in political manipulation,” when answering a question at a news conference.
In related news, academics at a forum hosted by a US-based think tank says the United States should respond more strongly to China's growing grey zone coercion near Taiwan to help the country maintain the status quo in the region.
At the event held by The Project 2049 Institute in Arlington, Virginia, independent defence analyst Ben Lewis said the People's Liberation Army is increasing activity near Taiwan to practice for operations and put a strain on Taiwan's defences. Lewis called for the U.S. to conduct law enforcement drills with Taiwan's coast guard to show support, but also learn about what China is doing.
Dan Blumenthal, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, also suggested that under the International Civil Aviation Organization, the US and its partners should team up to deter China's efforts to normalize the intrusions of its war planes into Taiwan's air defence identification zone.
