Japan and Taiwan monitor Chinese Coast Guard vessels near disputed waters

Eight Japanese Coast Guard patrol vessels entered the Taiwan Strait on October 22 to seek shelter from Typhoon Qiangbi. During this maneuver, five Chinese Coast Guard ships reportedly followed and monitored the Japanese fleet as it moved from the north toward the waters southwest of Qimei, Penghu.

Taiwan's Coast Guard Administration stated that the Japanese vessels' movement through the strait's median line and into international waters complies with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Officials noted that the Chinese vessels' actions appeared to be an attempt to create a false impression of jurisdiction over the strait. Taiwan emphasized that the Japanese vessels respected local enforcement authority and that the movement was a humanitarian response to the typhoon.

In a related development, Japan's 11th Regional Coast Guard Headquarters reported that Chinese Coast Guard vessels, which had been patrolling the contiguous zone near the Senkaku Islands (known as the Diaoyu Islands in China) for 74 consecutive days, departed the area on October 21. This departure is believed to be due to the approach of Typhoon Qiangbi. China maintains that the islands are its inherent territory and that its patrols are legitimate exercises of sovereignty.