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World

Taiwan coast guard fires water cannon at Chinese fishing boat near Dongsha Island

Taiwan's Coast Guard Administration used a water cannon to drive off the Chinese fishing boat Jin Sha after it refused repeated orders to leave restricted waters near Dongsha Island, then towed the stricken vessel out and fed its crew, the CGA said Friday.

By Sarah Whitfield · · 2 min read

Taiwan’s Coast Guard Administration (CGA) used a water cannon on Thursday to drive off the Chinese fishing boat Jin Sha after it refused repeated orders to leave restricted waters near Taiwan-held Dongsha Island in the South China Sea, the agency said in a statement issued Friday.

At around 11 a.m. Thursday, the CGA’s Dongsha-Nansha Branch detected an unidentified boat about 15.5 nautical miles northeast of Dongsha Island — roughly 5.5 nautical miles inside Taiwan’s prohibited waters. The agency dispatched its 4,000-ton patrol vessel Yunlin, which around 3 p.m. found two Chinese fishing boats — the Yue Hui Dong Yu 75066 and the Jin Sha — fishing about 27 nautical miles east of the island, or 8 nautical miles inside restricted waters, according to Focus Taiwan’s report of the statement.

The Yue Hui Dong Yu weighed anchor and sailed away after the Yunlin issued warnings, but the Jin Sha refused. After three unsuccessful radio warnings, the patrol vessel fired its water cannon for 30 seconds from about 200 metres away, then moved closer and sprayed the boat for another 90 seconds, the CGA said. The agency said the decision to use “low-lethal weaponry” followed standard operating procedures.

The Jin Sha later lost power while leaving the area. The Yunlin provided 35 hot meals to the crew at their request, towed the fishing boat out of restricted waters, and handed it over to a Chinese work vessel early Friday morning, standing by until the handover was complete.

The CGA said it remained committed to “lawfully driving away Chinese fishing vessels that have crossed its borders” and urged China to curb illegal fishing and protect marine resources.

Dongsha, about 450 kilometres southwest of Kaohsiung, is one of two island groups Taiwan controls in the South China Sea. Focus Taiwan reported around 300 CGA personnel are stationed there; the other, Taiping Island (Itu Aba), about 1,600 kilometres southwest of Kaohsiung, hosts about 200.

Sources

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