Taiwan Coast Guard Repels Chinese Research and Fishing Vessels

The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) of Taiwan conducted multiple operations on June 19, 2026, to repel Chinese vessels from restricted waters. In Yilan County, the CGA deployed the Lanyu patrol vessel and patrol boat PP-10077 to warn off the Chinese research ship Xiang Yang Hong 22. After the vessel entered restricted waters near Su'ao, the CGA used radio warnings and wave-generating maneuvers to disrupt its operations until it departed at 4:20 a.m. Friday. While China's Xinhua News Agency claimed the ship was conducting an ecological survey, the CGA accused Beijing of using research as a pretext for expansion.

Simultaneously, the CGA intercepted a Chinese fishing vessel west of Huayu in the Penghu archipelago. After the ship ignored five warnings, authorities boarded the vessel, seized 750 kilograms of illegally caught fish, and detained six crew members. The operation coincided with the appearance of the China Coast Guard ship Haijing 2102 nearby, which the CGA monitored using the frigate Lienchiang.

Ocean Affairs Council officials described these incidents as part of a brazen pattern of provocation involving the research vessel Tongji and unnamed ships. The CGA has adopted a shadowing and monitoring strategy, deploying matching numbers of patrol ships to deny China access to jurisdictional waters without using force to avoid providing Beijing a pretext for escalation. President Lai Ching-te condemned the military expansion, asserting that Taiwan's future is decided solely by its 23 million people.