Taiwan Detains Suspicious Ship Linked to China After Offshore Cable Damage

 

Taiwan’s Coast Guard Administration confirmed it has detained a suspicious vessel for further investigation as the country’s telecom provider Chunghwa reported operations of one of its offshore cables had been interrupted. The vessel which is believed to have Chinese ownership but is flying the flag of Togo was directed into port where it was boarded for investigation.

Taiwan had reported in January that it was increasing its offshore surveillance and patrols in response to a perceived threat from Communist China. The island nation experienced a cable outage in January 2025 which it said might have been caused by another ship related to China and in 2023 lost communications links to one of its small offshore islands after another cable was severed. The Navy started a new tracking system to identify suspicious vessels focusing they reported on ships flying a flag of convenience.

The Coast Guard had been deployed to investigate the vessel which is showing an identity of Hongtai 168 after the monitoring system observed the vessel anchored since February 22 approximately six nautical miles off the fishing village of Jiangjun in southwest Taiwan on the Taiwan Strait. The Coast Guard reports a shore station had attempted to contact the vessel seven times since it anchored offshore but received no reply.

Today, February 25, at just after 0300 local time the vessel was observed starting to move away from its anchorage in a northwest direction. At approximately the same time, the Coast Guard was asked to investigate after Chunghwa Telecom reported its main subsea cable to Penghu was apparently severed and it had switched to a backup to maintain communications.

 

Taiwan Coast Guard boarded the vessel after it was directed into port (Coast Guard Administration)

 

The Coast Guard intercepted the vessel but was unable to board it due to high seas and a high freeboard. Two additional vessels were dispatched to assist and the Togo-flagged ship was directed into Anping Port where it arrived at midday and was boarded for further inspection.

The vessel appears to have been built in 2006 and previously reported ownership by Chinese interests. It is 1,800 dwt.

Taiwanese officials are questioning the identity of the vessel. They reported there was a crew of eight Chinese nationals aboard who said the vessel was Hongtai 168. That name is painted on the hull as well but the AIS signal is broadcasting Hongtai 58. Officials are calling the vessel a “makeshift ship,” but they believe it is backed by Chinese capital.

They noted that while there is an apparent break in the cable it is unclear if it was intentional sabotage or an accident. Further investigations are underway to clarify the circumstances.