A Chinese spy ship has been observed off Taiwan’s east coast over several days as Taiwan’s state-owned defense manufacturing company conducts missile tests in the area.
The ship is believed to have been gathering intelligence about the parameters of the missiles being tested. The ship stayed more than 24 nautical miles from the coast, beyond Taiwan’s territorial waters and contiguous zone. This meant that while the military was aware of the ship’s presence, it could not chase the ship away.
The military says it has kept watch on the ship’s movements, and that the ship moved back out to sea beyond Taiwan’s monitoring range at around noon on Thursday.