Key facts
- China has initiated a special maritime law-enforcement operation east of Taiwan.
- Beijing has issued a legal warning against Japan and the Philippines concerning their upcoming maritime border talks.
- China claims jurisdiction over the waters east of Taiwan, asserting that Taiwan and its subordinate islands belong to China.
- The Japan-Philippines maritime talks are presented by Beijing as "illegal and invalid" and an "internationally wrongful act."
- China's operation follows the agreement between Tokyo and Manila to clarify overlapping maritime claims in their exclusive economic zones.
- Taiwan rejects China's claims and advocates for peaceful dialogue and international law to resolve maritime boundaries.
China has escalated its maritime assertiveness by launching a special law-enforcement operation east of Taiwan and issuing a legal warning to Japan and the Philippines regarding their planned maritime border talks. Beijing's actions are framed as a response to the bilateral delimitation talks between Tokyo and Manila concerning their exclusive economic zones, which China deems "illegal and invalid."
China's position is rooted in its claim that Taiwan is part of China, and therefore, any maritime rights east of the island fall under its jurisdiction. This assertion is rejected by Taiwan, which advocates for resolving maritime boundaries through international law and peaceful dialogue. The waters east and southeast of Taiwan are strategically significant, forming a key corridor linking various seas and lying near the first island chain, crucial for China's naval power projection and for regional states' sea-lane security.
The dispute highlights China's broader strategy of using coastguard vessels, maritime militia, and survey ships to assert its claims incrementally. This approach aims to test regional responses and gradually normalize its jurisdictional assertions. Recent activities include Chinese coastguard and research vessel presence near Taiwan-controlled Pratas Islands and drills by the Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning east of the Philippines.
Japan and the Philippines have been deepening their security cooperation, with their leaders suggesting they would be drawn into any conflict over Taiwan, remarks that have irked Beijing. China's legal opinion, released by its Ministry of Natural Resources, stated that the Japan-Philippines talks "in essence ignored the fact that Taiwan and its subordinate islands belong to China," infringing upon China's territorial sovereignty and violating the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.