Taitung, a 1,000-ton cutter commissioned in May, will depart July 16 from Kaohsiung City in Southern Taiwan, on a patrol of undetermined duration. It is to join 18,000-ton CGA cutter Wei-hsing, which is currently operating in the waters surrounding Taiping Island in the Nansha (Spratly) Islands.
Cabinet spokesman Tung Chen-yuan said the deployment underscores the government’s commitment to expanding the nation’s presence in the South China Sea, and follows President Tsai Ing-wen’s order for ROC navy Kangding-class frigate Dihua to depart July 13, 24 hours early, on a regular patrol of the region.
Tsai, who saw the vessel off from Kaohsiung, addressed the crew onboard, reminding them that the patrol had taken on great significance because of the new changes in the South China Sea.
Comprising numerous decisions, the award classified Taiping Island as a rock and not an island. This would call into question the ROC’s rightful claim to a 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone on Taiping Island.
The PCA award has evoked strong reactions in Taiwan. Office of the President and several ministries immediately issued statements reaffirming that the ROC is entitled to all rights over the South China Sea Islands and their relevant waters in accordance with international law and the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea. The arbitral tribunal did not formally invite the ROC to participate in its proceedings, nor did it solicit the ROC’s views.
“The award is therefore completely unacceptable and has no legally binding force on Taiwan,” Premier Lin Chuan said July 14.
Taiping Island, with an area of 0.51 square kilometers, is the largest naturally formed island in the Nansha Islands. It can sustain human habitation and an economic life of its own, and meets the criteria of an island as defined in Article 121 of UNCLOS. Accordingly, the ROC enjoys full rights associated with territorial waters, a contiguous zone, an exclusive economic zone and a continental shelf in accordance with UNCLOS. (SFC-E)
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