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Shi Jiangtao

Beijing on Saturday rotated a new coastguard task force into waters east of Taiwan.
The second such deployment in about a month came days after China’s top diplomat urged Washington to exercise “utmost prudence” on the self-governed island.
The move also comes close on the heels of high-level talks with the Philippines, where Beijing pressed Manila to match words with deeds and stabilise bilateral relations amid persistent South China Sea tensions.
The Chinese coastguard said on Saturday that its Xiushan ship formation had replaced the Daishan group to continue “routine law enforcement patrols” east of Taiwan.
China Coast Guard (CCG) spokesman Jiang Lue said the patrols, which began in June, involved inspection operations, fisheries protection and rescue missions. These were intended to maintain navigational order and safeguard “the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese fishermen, including Taiwan compatriots”, he said.
“The CCG will continue to strengthen law enforcement patrols in waters under China’s jurisdiction and resolutely safeguard national territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests.”
Taiwan’s coastguard confirmed in ‌a statement that it had deployed two vessels to shadow the mainland Chinese ships, which were operating about 54 nautical miles (100km) off Hualien – home to a major Taiwanese airbase – but outside restricted waters.
Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council condemned the patrol, calling it an “illegal expansion of power in violation of international law and a disruption of regional stability”.
“The Chinese communists have ‌no sovereignty or related rights in the waters east of Taiwan, have no jurisdiction over these waters, and none of its official vessels have any law-enforcement authority there,” it ‌said in a separate statement.
Beijing has ramped up military pressure on Taiwan in recent years, carrying out multiple large-scale exercises and near-daily operations around the island – especially since William Lai Ching-te, whom Beijing condemns as a “separatist”, took office as leader in 2024.


Beijing sees Taiwan as part of China and has not ruled out the use of force to achieve reunification. Most countries, including the United States, do not recognise Taiwan as an independent state, but Washington is opposed to any attempt to take the self-ruled island by force and is legally committed to supplying it with weapons.
Saturday’s patrols follow a similar operation last month, which Beijing linked to Japan and the Philippines’ announcement of formal maritime boundary delimitation talks.
Beijing condemned those negotiations as “illegal”, arguing they overlapped with waters it claims near Taiwan.
On Thursday, China’s Ministry of Natural Resources issued a legal warning to Tokyo and Manila, calling their talks “internationally wrongful”.
The US, Britain, France and Germany voiced concern last month over the implications of the Chinese coastguard deployments for regional stability and freedom of navigation.
China’s foreign ministry rejected the criticism on June 25, insisting the patrols were lawful and necessary.
The latest patrols came after Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi warned US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in a phone call on Tuesday that the Taiwan question had “far-reaching implications” and required “utmost prudence”.
It was the first such conversation between the two top diplomats since the May presidential summit between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping in Beijing, where Xi cautioned against mismanaging Taiwan.


On Wednesday, Xi reinforced Beijing’s stance in a speech marking the Communist Party’s 105th anniversary, describing the resolution of the “Taiwan question” and “complete reunification” as an “unshakeable commitment”.
Also on Tuesday, Chinese and Philippine officials held working consultations in Manila, where both sides emphasised dialogue and the management of differences, according to a Chinese foreign ministry statement released on Friday.
It said Liu Jinsong, director general of the foreign ministry’s Asian affairs department, urged the Philippines to “honour its commitments and match words with deeds”, while expressing “serious concerns” over what Beijing viewed as negative moves.


Liu also noted that China valued Manila’s stated willingness to improve relations, and reiterated Beijing’s broader policy of maintaining cooperative ties with its neighbours.
Philippine officials led by Marshall Louis Alferez, a foreign affairs assistant secretary, reaffirmed Manila’s commitment to dialogue and the one-China principle, while expressing readiness to manage disputes constructively and avoid unintended incidents, particularly in its role as Asean chair, according to the Chinese statement.
The Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs said both sides “reaffirmed the value of continued dialogue, open channels of communication, and the peaceful management of differences through diplomacy”.
The Philippine readouts described the talks as building on earlier 2026 sessions in Cebu, Beijing and Quanzhou, where officials discussed South China Sea issues, provisional arrangements to reduce incidents during resupply missions, and potential practical cooperation.
Both sides reported progress on communication mechanisms despite persistent frictions at sea, including incidents near Scarborough Shoal and other contested features.
Relations have oscillated between tension and engagement under President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr, with the Philippines bolstering military ties with the US and Japan and their allies, while pursuing bilateral channels with China to manage disputes.


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Taiwan

Beijing sends new coastguard force into waters east of Taiwan

A Chinese coastguard vessel patrols the South China Sea. Photo: Xinhua

Wang Yi warns Marco Rubio to approach Taiwan affairs with ‘utmost caution’

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi speaks at the UN headquarters in New York in May. Photo: Reuters

Beijing slams US, European concerns over coastguard patrols near Taiwan

A mainland Chinese vessel is seen approaching the waters near Taiwan-controlled Taiping Island in the South China Sea on June 11. Photo: Taiwan Ocean Affairs Council via AP

China sends warning to Japan and the Philippines over ‘wrongful’ maritime talks

The Chinese coastguard conducted what it described as a law enforcement patrol in waters east of Taiwan after Japan and the Philippines agreed to hold maritime border talks. Photo: CCTV

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr meets Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in Tokyo on May 28. Photo: EPA

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Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (left) with US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office in March. Photo: Getty Images 

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Manila said four Chinese vessels shadowed a US-Philippine maritime exercise near the disputed Scarborough Shoal over the weekend. Photo: Handout

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China

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Xiushan ship formation has replaced Daishan group to continue ‘routine law enforcement patrols’, Beijing says, as Taiwan shadows fleet


Xiushan ship formation has replaced Daishan group to continue ‘routine law enforcement patrols’, Beijing says, as Taiwan shadows fleet.


Beijing sends new coastguard force into waters east of Taiwan

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Xiushan ship formation has replaced Daishan group to continue ‘routine law enforcement patrols’, Beijing says, as Taiwan shadows fleet

Xiushan ship formation has replaced Daishan group to continue ‘routine law enforcement patrols’, Beijing says, as Taiwan shadows fleet