Undersea cable off Taiwan coast may have been 'damaged by Chinese ship'

The Cameroon-flagged cargo ship “Shunxing 39”, owned by a Chinese company, damaged a communications cable near the port of Keelung. Taiwan has asked South Korea for help in investigating the incident.

Taiwan has asked South Korea for help in investigating the incident.

Reported by UNN with reference to Taipei and the Financial Times.

Details

An undersea cable off the coast of Taiwan may have been “damaged by a Chinese ship” in the latest disturbing incident of “sabotage” after a Chinese bulk carrier was named as a suspect in a cable-cutting scandal in the Baltic Sea. A Chinese cargo ship damaged a communications cable near the port of Keelung on Taiwan's northern coast on the morning of January 3, the Financial Times reported on Sunday, citing telecommunications provider Chunghwa Telecom. Although the cargo ship Shunxing 39 is flagged to Cameroon, Taiwanese authorities say it is owned by Jie Yang Trading Limited. The Hong Kong-registered company is headed by Guo Wenjie, a mainland Chinese citizen.

Chunghwa Telecom said the cable had its own backup equipment and that the incident would not affect telecommunications in Taiwan, the Taipei Times reported.

The damaged infrastructure connects Taiwan to the west coast of the United States and is jointly owned by an international consortium. 

Taiwan has asked South Korea for help in the investigation incident.  

Addendum

Taipei is concerned that China may secretly disrupt Taiwan's external communication channels, pursuing components of its goal of annexing the island. Beijing claims sovereignty over the island of Taiwan – the PRC has occasionally threatened to seize Taiwan by force if necessary.