Taiwan says China seizure of trawler may be act of psychological warfare

4/7/2024 11:39

        China's seizure of a Taiwanese trawler operating close to the Chinese coast for illegal fishing might be an act of psychological warfare by Beijing designed to further pressure Taipei, a top Taiwan security official said on Thursday.
        
        Chinese officials boarded and then took the boat back to a port in China late on Tuesday. It was fishing for squid in Chinese waters but near the Taiwan-controlled Kinmen islands. China says it violated a summer ban on fishing and carried out illegal trawling operations.
        
        The incident happened at a time of growing tensions across the Taiwan Strait. China views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and has ramped up pressure on Taipei since May when President Lai Ching-te took office, a man Beijing accuses of being a "separatist".
        
        Speaking to reporters at parliament, Taiwan National Security Bureau Director-General Tsai Ming-yen said it was unusual for Chinese officials to board and then detain a Taiwanese trawler, and noted China's explanation that it was illegally fishing.
        
        He added, but China may also have done this to demonstrate its jurisdiction over the strait and put pressure on Taiwan's government.