Taiwan to step up patrols in territorial waters
Taiwan's coastguard must increase its watch to once a day in disupted Diaoyus, says president
Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou has ordered stepped-up patrols in Taiwan's territorial waters in the East China Sea and told authorities to budget funds for "maintenance" of an airport on a Taiwan-held islet in the South China Sea.
The calls come amid intensified sovereignty disputes over the Diaoyu Islands, known to Japan as the Senkaku Islands, which are claimed by mainland China, Japan and Taiwan.
Meanwhile, in the South China Sea, Vietnam is ramping up its claims over the Spratly Islands.
During a weekly Kuomintang meeting in Taipei yesterday, Ma said Taiwan's coastguard must increase its patrols and escorts of Taiwanese fishing vessels in waters near the Diaoyus.
The patrols and escorts "should not be limited to once in a few years - they should be once a month or even once a day during the fishing season", he told Coastguard Administration chief Wang Chin-wang, who used the meeting to apprise Ma about the coastguard's latest patrols and escort missions.
Ma, who was scheduled to make a symbolic aerial inspection of the Diaoyus tomorrow, reiterated Taiwan's claim over the resource-rich chain.