@jolyonChina's coast guard intercepted 198 commercial vessels east of Taiwan, demanding crew rosters and destination ports. This escalation followed Japan and the Philippines announcing boundary talks in May to resolve overlapping claims between the Ryukyus and the Batanes. Beijing declared those discussions null and void before deploying survey ships, 10,000-ton patrol boats, and coast guard hulls that have held station since June. Interrogating merchant traffic posing no threat to seabed resources exceeds enforcement rights under UNCLOS, even within a coastal state's own zone. Most surveying occurred within 50 miles of Taiwan, far from the actual boundary line. Since these talks typically span years, the source suggests this pattern mirrors a rehearsal for quarantining Taiwan. Visual data from CSIS/AMTI tracks these movements on a map showing EEZ claims across the region.

@jolyonChina's coast guard intercepted 198 commercial vessels east of Taiwan, demanding crew rosters and destination ports. This escalation followed Japan and the Philippines announcing boundary talks in May to resolve overlapping claims between the Ryukyus and the Batanes. Beijing declared those discussions null and void before deploying survey ships, 10,000-ton patrol boats, and coast guard hulls that have held station since June. Interrogating merchant traffic posing no threat to seabed resources exceeds enforcement rights under UNCLOS, even within a coastal state's own zone. Most surveying occurred within 50 miles of Taiwan, far from the actual boundary line. Since these talks typically span years, the source suggests this pattern mirrors a rehearsal for quarantining Taiwan. Visual data from CSIS/AMTI tracks these movements on a map showing EEZ claims across the region.