China attempting to normalize maritime patrols around Kinmen: Minister

Taipei, June 26 (CNA) China is attempting to establish a new normal by increasing its activities in the prohibited and restricted waters around Kinmen, Defense Minister Wellington Koo (顧立雄) said on Wednesday.

Koo made the remarks during a legislative committee hearing after Kuomintang (KMT) Legislator Huang Jen (黃仁) raised concerns about four China Coast Guard (CCG) vessels spotted in restricted waters off the Taiwan-controlled Kinmen Islands the previous day.

According to the CGA's Kinmen-Matsu-Penghu Branch, the intrusion was reported sometime after 5 a.m. on Tuesday, prompting the latter to dispatch three patrol boats to keep tabs on the Chinese vessels and gather evidence until they left the area at 8 a.m.

The Chinese boats -- whose pennant numbers are 14609, 14603, 14513, and 14605 -- paired up and respectively entered the restricted area from east of Beiding Island and south of Fuxing Island on sorties that lasted about two hours, the branch said.

The Chinese coast guard is indeed attempting to establish a new normal by ignoring the prohibited and restricted waters around Kinmen, Koo said.

When Chinese ships identified as non-military intrude into Kinmen's prohibited and restricted waters, he said the armed forces coordinate with the CGA to monitor their movements.

However, should there be an incursion by a Chinese military vessel, the situation would be dealt with according to existing contingency measures, Koo said without elaborating.

On Wednesday, the CGA said the four Chinese coast guard boats deliberately sailed into Kinmen waters in formation with the obvious intention of causing trouble.

The administration urged China to recognize the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, and undertook to take a firm stance in safeguarding the country's maritime rights.

From January to June 25 this year, the CGA said its patrol vessels expelled a total of 835 Chinese boats intruding into Taiwan-controlled waters, while seven vessels were seized and brought back to port for investigation.