Taiwan says coast guard drove away 16 Chinese vessels near island and Pratas
Taiwan’s coast guard said Chinese vessels operated simultaneously at several locations on Oct. 18. A separate encounter near Pratas two days earlier shows the pressure on its patrols.
Taiwan’s coast guard said on Oct. 18 that it drove away 16 Chinese coast guard, research and fishing vessels during coordinated operations off Taiwan’s eastern, southern and southwestern coasts and around the Taiwan-controlled Pratas Islands. The reported entries into restricted waters put several stretches of coastline and the outlying islands at the centre of the same day’s maritime confrontation.
The agency described the number of vessels as ‘unusually large’ and said they operated simultaneously at multiple locations. Four were fishing boats, according to Agence France-Presse’s account of the statement. The coast guard called the activity ‘maritime harassment’ and ‘hybrid warfare’; those descriptions are Taiwan’s characterization of the vessels’ conduct.
Some vessels entered waters Taiwan designates as restricted, the coast guard said. It said its patrols took ‘forceful action immediately to effectively neutralise the threats’ and accused China of trying to create a false impression that it holds jurisdiction across the Taiwan Strait. AFP reported the coast guard’s account of the 16-vessel operation; the vessels’ actions have not been independently established in the reporting.
A separate confrontation at Pratas on Oct. 16
Two China Coast Guard vessels entered restricted waters around Pratas at 3:34 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 16, according to a separate Coast Guard Administration statement reported by the Taipei Times. Taiwan deployed its Cijin patrol ship and patrol boat PP-10032 to flank one vessel, broadcast warnings in Chinese and English, and order it to leave. That encounter was still continuing when the agency issued its statement on Friday night.
The agency said its Dongsha command had detected the two ships southwest of the atoll at about 2 p.m. and sent patrols after assessing their courses and speeds. It identified the Chinese ships as coast guard vessels 3301 and 3303. The Friday incident is distinct from the 16-vessel operation Taiwan described on Sunday.
Why the waters around Pratas are contested
Taiwan controls Pratas, also known as Dongsha. Beijing claims Taiwan as its territory and asserts jurisdiction over surrounding waters, positions Taipei rejects. Taiwan’s coast guard said the Friday entry was an attempt to use purported law enforcement activity to create the appearance of Chinese authority around the islands.
The Dongsha-Nansha Branch said it had conducted 11 operations to expel Chinese coast guard ships from waters around Dongsha this year, involving 14 vessel encounters. Those figures describe earlier patrol responses around the islands, rather than a count of Sunday’s Chinese vessels.
The wider maritime presence has also risen around Taiwan’s main island. Taiwanese official data cited by AFP counted 244 Chinese coast guard, research and other vessels in July, against 55 in June, 30 in May and 58 in July 2025. Those figures exclude Chinese warships. They provide a measure of the pressure on Taiwan’s maritime patrols, while the coast guard’s account remains the basis for Sunday’s reported outcome.
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Sources and context
- Taiwan says it drove away 16 Chinese ships involved in ‘maritime harassment’Agence France-Presse, published by The Straits Times
- Chinese ships enter restricted waters around Pratas: CGATaipei Times (staff writer, with CNA)
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.