In the final instalment of a three-part series examining mainland China’s increasing military presence around Taiwan, Hayley Wong explores the role the coastguard is playing in ramping up the pressure on Taipei and what it might do in the event of an all-out assault.
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Most of the international attention China’s coastguard has attracted in recent months has focused on its role in the South China Sea, but the force also plays a major role in pressurising Taiwan.
The coastguard is central to Beijing’s grey-zone tactics – which are designed to intensify the pressure on the island while falling short of full-blown warfare – and has been carrying out regular patrols around Taiwan in the hope this is less likely to trigger a strong response than the use of the navy would.
This increased presence follows an incident in February when two mainland fishermen died after their boat capsized during a chase by Taiwan’s coastguard near the mainland coast.
Beijing has said these patrols are intended to “maintain operational order in sea areas and safeguard fishermen’s lives and property”.
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At the same time, coastguards have played a greater role in People’s Liberation Army activities in the Taiwan Strait and many analysts say they are likely to play a major role in any military operations targeting the island.
The China Coast Guard’s [CCG] combat readiness is at “a low to medium level”, according to Lyle Goldstein, director of the China Initiative at the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs at Brown University.