Beijing and Taipei argue over severing of underwater cable near Taiwan - Reuters

Taiwan's Coast Guard suspects that a Chinese vessel damaged a cable off the island's northern coast at the end of last week. However, investigators were unable to board the ship for an inquiry due to bad weather. Instead, the ship's owner told the agency that there is no evidence linking the vessel to the incident.

The Taiwanese Coast Guard does not rule out the possibility that the ship, which is registered in Cameroon and Tanzania but owned by a Hong Kong company, was engaged in activities in the gray zone. However, the agency did not provide any direct evidence of this.

"Mark of Evil"

Late on Wednesday, January 8, China's Taiwan Affairs Office stated that the damage to underwater cables was a normal maritime accident and that Taiwan's accusations were baseless, deliberately inflating the so-called gray zone threat from the mainland.

In response, Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council stated that the matter is under investigation and will be addressed based on the evidence gathered.

"Internationally, mainland Chinese ships flying flags of convenience have the mark of evil about them," the statement reads. This refers to investigations into the damage to underwater cables by Chinese ships in the Baltic countries.

The Council also reminded that Taiwan has previously faced cable damage leading to the Kinmen and Matsu Islands, territories located near the Chinese coast but controlled by Taipei.

"Of course the government must be cautious in handling this," they added.

Earlier, Taiwan had repeatedly complained about China's activities in the gray zone around the island, aimed at exerting pressure on Taiwan without confrontation. This included incidents involving Chinese air balloon flyovers and dredging operations on sandbanks.

Tension in relations between China and Taiwan

The Chinese authorities refer to Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen as a separatist and reject his repeated attempts to initiate negotiations.

Last year, China held two naval military exercises under the guise of warnings against separatism. Xi Jinping regularly declares his intention to bring Taiwan under the control of the People's Republic of China. However, Tsai and her government rejected Beijing's claims to sovereignty, stating that only the people of Taiwan have the right to determine their future.

Earlier reports indicated that the cable damage in the Taiwan area occurred on January 3 near the Keelung port, and the culprit was the cargo ship Shunxing39.

Damage to cables in the Baltic Sea

The incident in Asia closely echoes a recent similar case of damage to communication cables between Finland and Estonia in the Baltic Sea.

Finland blames the incident on the tanker Eagle S, part of Russia's shadow fleet, which was sailing in the area where the accident occurred.

The ship's crew is suspected of vandalism, and seven sailors have been banned from leaving the country.