U.S. Highlights Cooperation With Taiwan's Coast Guard, Risking China's Ire

Just one week after a controversial Chinese "fishery research" voyage into Taiwan's eastern exclusive economic zone (EEZ), the U.S. representative office in Taipei has confirmed and publicized a joint U.S. Coast Guard-Taiwan Coast Guard patrol. It is a rare public announcement of security cooperation: the U.S. does not formally recognize Taiwan as a nation, and even small visible steps that legitimize Taiwanese sovereignty can provoke a strong response from Beijing.

The statement from the American Institute in Taiwan - the nearest analogue to a U.S. embassy on the island - was innocuous: the office said that "the United States Coast Guard and the Taiwan Coast Guard are busy coordinating on shared maritime objectives," like preparing for disaster response and combating drug smuggling. The accompanying image was from a past patrol; Midgett has long since returned to Hawaii, where she is homeported. But Taiwan's government was swift to capitalize on the symbolism of the photo, and specifically on the U.S. diplomatic office's newfound willingness to publicize it at all.

"The US truly understands that the Taiwan Coast Guard is the only law enforcement agency in Taiwan's territorial waters," said ocean affairs minister Kuan Bi-ling in a statement Tuesday. "This disclosure is deeply meaningful to us and is a new move by the US to demonstrate its commitment to maintaining the security and peace of the Western Pacific."

The positioning can be viewed in the context of recent Chinese operations in Taiwan's waters. China has been conducting "special maritime law enforcement operations" east of Taiwan, in the Philippine Sea, which appear designed in part to challenge neighboring states' EEZ claims. A recent fishery research patrol, conducted without authorization in the Taiwanese EEZ, "serves as a countermeasure to the maritime boundary delimitation talks launched by Japan and the Philippines" in waters overlapping Taiwan's, a Chinese maritime policy expert told state outlet Global Times.