TAIPEI (TVBS News) — On Wednesday (March 13), Taiwanese legislator Chen Yu-jen questioned whether dredging vessels from China could pass through restricted waters off Kinmen, to which both Premier Chen Chien-jen and Ocean Affairs Council Minister Kuan Bi-ling answered in the negative.
Chen Yu-jen then faulted a 2015 Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) announcement permitting China's passenger and cargo ships to traverse Kinmen's waters. Following this, the Minister of the Mainland Affairs Council Chiu Tai-san asserted that the dredging ships "could" navigate these restricted areas.
However, the Coast Guard Administration clarified that dredging vessels aren't classified as passenger or cargo ships and, consequently, aren't included in the 2015 announcement.
On the other end, Chen Binhua, spokesperson for China's Taiwan Affairs Office, stated that regular dredging of the "Liu Wu Tien" channel is routine.
Tensions remain high in the Kinmen-Xiamen waters following the capsizing of a Chinese fishing boat, which caused two deaths.