Taiwan probing a Mainland-crewed ship believed to have severed an undersea cable

Taiwanese authorities are investigating a Mainland-crewed ship suspected of severing an undersea communications cable in the latest such incident adding to tensions between Taipei and Beijing.

Taiwan’s coast guard intercepted the Togolese-flagged cargo ship Hongtai in waters between its main island’s west coast and the outlying Penghu Islands early yesterday, according to a statement by the coast guard.

The coast guard had earlier been notified by telecommunications provider Chunghwa Telecom that one of its undersea cables had been severed 6 nautical miles (11 kilometers) northwest of Jiangjun Fishing Harbor.

The Hongtai had been anchored in that same area since Saturday evening, the coast guard said. From Saturday until early Tuesday, authorities in the nearby Anping Port in Tainan had sent signals to the vessel seven times but had received no response. After the Chunghwa Telecom cable damage report, the coast guard approached the ship, which had begun to sail northwestward, and escorted it to Anping Port.

Taiwanese authorities said the ship’s entire eight-person crew were Chinese nationals and the case was being handled “in accordance with national security-level principles.”

A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said during a regular press briefing yesterday that he was not aware of the issue and it did not pertain to diplomacy. MDT/AP