Taiwan Probes Chinese Ship in Undersea Cable Incident

In recent developments, Taiwanese officials are conducting an inquiry into an incident involving a cargo vessel with a Chinese crew, suspected of cutting an underwater communications cable. This event is the latest in a series concerning Taipei-Beijing relations.

Taiwan’s coast guard intercepted the ship, named Hongtai, carrying the flag of Togo. It was located in the waters between Taiwan’s main island and the Penghu Islands. According to a statement from the coast guard, this happened early on Tuesday.

Prior to this interception, telecommunications company Chunghwa Telecom alerted the authorities about one of their undersea cables being severed, approximately 6 nautical miles northwest of Jiangjun Fishing Harbor.

It was noted that the Hongtai had been stationed in the same region since Saturday evening. During this time, the ship remained unresponsive to seven signals sent from nearby Anping Port in Tainan. After Chunghwa Telecom reported the damage, the coast guard managed to approach the Hongtai, which had begun to head northwest, and subsequently escorted it to Anping Port.

Taiwanese authorities revealed that all eight crew members of the ship were Chinese nationals and asserted that the situation would be addressed with principles aligning with national security.

“The cause behind the cable break remains under investigation to determine if it was an intentional act or merely accidental,” stated the coast guard. “We cannot entirely dismiss the possibility of this being a gray-zone strategy by China.”

Despite the cable damage, communications on the Penghu Islands remained functional, thanks to a backup cable activated by Chunghwa Telecom.

This event adds to a pattern observed over the past few years, where numerous undersea cables connecting Taiwan have been damaged. Taipei has, in some cases, attributed these incidents to China. Earlier in the year, another Chinese cargo ship was implicated in a similar incident northeast of the island.

Back in February 2023, two critical undersea cables responsive to Taiwan’s Matsu Islands were also destroyed, leading to prolonged communication disruptions.

There is an ongoing concern in Taipei about China potentially targeting underwater communication links as part of moves to isolate or claim the island, which China considers a part of its territory.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson from China’s Foreign Ministry indicated during a press briefing that they were not informed about the incident and stated it did not relate to diplomatic matters.