Latest news with #ZhuFenglian
Saba Yemen
16-04-2025
- Politics
- Saba Yemen
Mainland China opposes military ties between United States and Taiwan
Beijing - Saba: The spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the Chinese State Council, Zhu Fenglian, said on Wednesday that the Chinese mainland firmly opposes any military ties between the United States and Taiwan, stressing that the Taiwan issue is an internal Chinese affair and that any external interference is not permitted. Whatsapp Telegram Email Print more of (International)
Al Jazeera
11-04-2025
- Al Jazeera
Taiwan charges captain of China-linked ship with damaging subsea cable
Taiwanese prosecutors have formally charged the captain of a Chinese-crewed cargo ship that Taipei says severed one of its subsea cables earlier this year. The Togo-flagged Hong Tai 58 was detained by Taiwan's coastguard in February near the site of a cable breakdown amid allegations that it had deliberately dropped its anchor to cause damage. The ship's captain, who was only identified to the public by his surname Wang, was charged on Friday with being responsible for the incident, the prosecutors said. Seven Chinese nationals who were on board the ship will not be charged, and will be transported back to China, the prosecutors added. The case marks a first for Taiwan, where subsea cables have become the latest front in what is described as 'hybrid warfare' or 'grey zone activity' with China. The terms refer to low-grade coercive acts such as sabotage that hold a certain degree of plausible deniability. China has long claimed Taiwan, an island with a population of 23 million, as a province of the mainland and has threatened to annex it by force, if necessary. China has yet to reply to the charges against Wang, but it has previously accused Taipei of 'manipulating' the facts of the accident to cast Beijing in a bad light. Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for China's Taiwan Affairs Office, previously described the subsea cable incident as a 'common maritime accident'. Wang declined to provide Taiwanese authorities with information about the ship's ownership, according to prosecutors, but the Hong Tai 58 is believed to be a so-called Chinese 'dark ship' acting unofficially on behalf of Beijing. 'Dark ships' have earned their name due to the practice of broadcasting multiple or false identities to maritime authorities. Sometimes the vessels may turn off identification signals to avoid detection, according to industry experts. Since 2023, there have been at least 11 cases of subsea cable breakdowns around Taiwan, although some were later ruled as accidents or due to the old age of the equipment. Subsea cables are the backbone of the internet and global telecoms industry, but they are also susceptible to breakdowns from movements on the sea floor or human activity. Between 100 and 200 cable breakdowns occur each year, according to industry data, and proving damage as deliberate is notoriously difficult and a challenge for governments beyond Taipei. Countries around the Baltic Sea have also seen an uptick in subsea cable breakdowns since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and they have also struggled to bring legal cases against Chinese and Russia-linked ships and their owners.
Al Arabiya
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
China asks compensation from Taiwan after collision of navy ship, trawler
China has demanded that Taiwan compensate Chinese fishermen for losses after a Taiwanese navy landing ship and a Chinese fishing boat collided outside restricted waters last week. The Taiwanese vessel, the Chung Ho, collided with the Chinese trawler Minlianyu 61756 early on March 27 shortly after midnight around 45 nautical miles (83 km) off Taiwan's Taichung port, which sits on the Taiwan Strait, and nine nautical miles outside of 'restricted waters', Taiwanese navy said last week. 'The responsibility for the accident lies entirely with the Taiwan ship, but the Taiwan ship had a bad attitude and evaded responsibility after hitting the fishing boat,' Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for China's Taiwan Affairs Office, said in a statement sent to Reuters on Friday. Zhu said China's preliminary investigation showed that the Chinese trawler was anchored with its automatic identification system (AIS) signal and warning lights turned on. It was hit by the Taiwanese ship that did not display its AIS signal or warning lights, Zhu said. Taiwan's navy, responding to the demand for compensation, said an investigation led by Taiwan's coast guard was ongoing, and that after the probe 'follow-up matters will be handled in accordance with the cross-strait consultation mechanism and relevant procedures'. It did not elaborate. The Taiwan Strait is the site of daily Chinese and Taiwanese military activities, though both sides normally maintain a respectful distance and there have been no exchanges of fire for decades. China, which claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, has ramped up its military drills around the island in recent years. Taiwan rejects China's sovereignty claims. The Chinese military staged two days of war games around Taiwan this week, in which it held long-range, live-fire drills in the East China Sea. Beijing said the exercises were a response to what it views as provocations from Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te, who won an election last year and whom Beijing reviles as a 'separatist.'
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
China demands compensation from Taiwan after collision of navy ship, trawler
BEIJING (Reuters) - China has demanded that Taiwan compensate Chinese fishermen for losses after a Taiwanese navy landing ship and a Chinese fishing boat collided outside restricted waters last week. The Taiwanese vessel, the Chung Ho, collided with the Chinese trawler Minlianyu 61756 early on March 27 shortly after midnight around 45 nautical miles (83 km) off Taiwan's Taichung port, which sits on the Taiwan Strait, and nine nautical miles outside of "restricted waters", Taiwanese navy said last week. "The responsibility for the accident lies entirely with the Taiwan ship, but the Taiwan ship had a bad attitude and evaded responsibility after hitting the fishing boat," Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for China's Taiwan Affairs Office, said in a statement sent to Reuters on Friday. Zhu said China's preliminary investigation showed that the Chinese trawler was anchored with its automatic identification system (AIS) signal and warning lights turned on. It was hit by the Taiwanese ship that did not display its AIS signal or warning lights, Zhu said. Taiwan's navy, responding to the demand for compensation, said an investigation led by Taiwan's coast guard was ongoing, and that after the probe "follow-up matters will be handled in accordance with the cross-strait consultation mechanism and relevant procedures". It did not elaborate. The Taiwan Strait is the site of daily Chinese and Taiwanese military activities, though both sides normally maintain a respectful distance and there have been no exchanges of fire for decades. China, which claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, has ramped up its military drills around the island in recent years. Taiwan rejects China's sovereignty claims. The Chinese military staged two days of war games around Taiwan this week, in which it held long-range, live-fire drills in the East China Sea. Beijing said the exercises were a response to what it views as provocations from Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te, who won an election last year and whom Beijing reviles as a "separatist".
Reuters
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
China demands compensation from Taiwan after collision of navy ship, trawler
BEIJING, April 4 (Reuters) - China has demanded that Taiwan compensate Chinese fishermen for losses after a Taiwanese navy landing ship and a Chinese fishing boat collided outside restricted waters last week. The Taiwanese vessel, the Chung Ho, collided with the Chinese trawler Minlianyu 61756 early on March 27 shortly after midnight around 45 nautical miles (83 km) off Taiwan's Taichung port, which sits on the Taiwan Strait, and nine nautical miles outside of "restricted waters", Taiwanese navy said last week. "The responsibility for the accident lies entirely with the Taiwan ship, but the Taiwan ship had a bad attitude and evaded responsibility after hitting the fishing boat," Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for China's Taiwan Affairs Office, said in a statement sent to Reuters on Friday. Zhu said China's preliminary investigation showed that the Chinese trawler was anchored with its automatic identification system (AIS) signal and warning lights turned on. It was hit by the Taiwanese ship that did not display its AIS signal or warning lights, Zhu said. Taiwan's navy, responding to the demand for compensation, said an investigation led by Taiwan's coast guard was ongoing, and that after the probe "follow-up matters will be handled in accordance with the cross-strait consultation mechanism and relevant procedures". It did not elaborate. The Taiwan Strait is the site of daily Chinese and Taiwanese military activities, though both sides normally maintain a respectful distance and there have been no exchanges of fire for decades. China, which claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, has ramped up its military drills around the island in recent years. Taiwan rejects China's sovereignty claims. The Chinese military staged two days of war games around Taiwan this week, in which it held long-range, live-fire drills in the East China Sea. Beijing said the exercises were a response to what it views as provocations from Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te, who won an election last year and whom Beijing reviles as a "separatist".
