Taipei, Taiwan CNN —China’s coast guard detained a Taiwanese fishing vessel and its five-member crew near the mainland’s southeast coast on Tuesday night, according to Taiwan authorities, in the latest flare-up of tensions in waters around a group of frontline islands controlled by Taipei.
In a statement, Taiwan’s coast guard said the fishing boat, Tachinman 88, was intercepted by two Chinese coast guard vessels near the Kinmen islands, which lie just miles from the Chinese city of Xiamen.
China coast guard officers boarded the fishing boat and then escorted it to a nearby Chinese port, the statement said, adding that three Taiwan coast guard vessels answered a call for help but retreated to avoid conflict when they were outnumbered by their Chinese counterparts.
The Taiwan coast guard demanded the immediate release of the boat and crew members.
In late February, Chinese coast guard officers intercepted and boarded a Taiwanese tourist boat for inspection, an unprecedented move that startled Taiwanese passengers.
Persons:
Hsieh Ching, China’s, Lai Ching, ”, Chen Yu, jen
Organizations:
Taiwan CNN, Taiwan’s Coast Guard Administration, Coast Guard Administration, Communist Party, Democratic Progressive Party, Kuomintang, CNN, Taiwan’s Ministry, Agriculture
Locations:
Taipei, Taiwan, Xiamen, China, Beijing, Kinmen, China’s