Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council says that no country has the right to infringe on Taiwan’s territorial waters and exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and that it absolutely rejects China’s provocations. That came on Saturday, June 6, in response to China’s Transport Ministry announcement of a special maritime law enforcement operation in the waters east of Taiwan on the same day. 

China says it is exercising law enforcement at sea in an effort to safeguard national interests. It says this is a necessary response to Japan and the Philippines unilaterally announcing negotiations over their maritime boundaries in the waters east of Taiwan.

A day before the announcement, Taiwan’s Coast Guard tracked a survey vessel entering restricted waters off Pratas Islands, known in Taiwan as Tungsha, southwest of Taiwan’s main island. The Coast Guard said that its vessels shadowed the intruders and attempted to expel them from the area.

Unlike two previous incursions by Chinese survey ships in May, this one was accompanied by a Chinese Coast Guard ship. The ships reportedly responded to attempts to drive them out of the restricted area by saying they were conducting law enforcement activities and that Taiwanese vessels should recognize the greater national interest of national unification.

Similar responses came from four Chinese vessels that entered Taiwan’s restricted waters 30 nautical miles southwest of the country’s main island on Sunday, June 7. Taiwan’s Coast Guard once again dispatched vessels to monitor the intruders and drove all four away by the evening.

Both Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council and the Coast Guard Administration firmly rejected China’s claims of jurisdiction over waters around Taiwan. Following the latest incident on Sunday, the Coast Guard condemned China’s use of the Japan-Philippines negotiations as a pretext masking its attempt to create the illusion of jurisdiction. It added it will take all necessary measures to fully safeguard national sovereignty and maritime security.