Taiping Island is part of an island chain called the Spratlys. The Spratlys - known as the Nansha Islands in Chinese- are a disputed island chain located about 1,120 kilometers southwest of Taiwan. They are situated about halfway between Vietnam and the Philippines or about 1,600 kilometers away from the Port of Kaohsiung.
Right now, Taiwan has effective administration over one island in the chain, Taiping Island. Taiping is the largest natural island in the chain, but China’s illicit island-building activities on nearby reefs mean it is no longer the largest by area. Taiwan’s coast guard is tasked with defending Taiping, while the Kaohsiung City Government is responsible for its administration.
But while Taiwan has effective administration over Taiping Island, the Spratlys are also claimed in part or in whole by China, the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, and Vietnam.
The government has rejected the ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), saying that it is not legally binding and that Taiwan was not consulted in the court’s process. To demonstrate Taiwan’s determination to safeguard its sovereignty, President Tsai Ing-wen on Wednesday boarded a navy vessel before it set out for a patrol mission in the South China Sea. Tsai said the court’s verdict, particularly with regard to Taiping Island, has seriously damaged Taiwan’s rights to its outlying islands and territorial waters. Tsai also called for peaceful means to solve territorial disputes through multilateral talks.
Taiwan is not a signatory to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. However, the designation of Taiping Island as a rock rather than an island could affect the livelihoods of Taiwanese fishermen. That’s because a state that controls an island is entitled to a 200 nautical mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) by international law. By contrast, a rock only entitles its owner to an area extending out to 12 nautical miles.
Meanwhile, Taiwan’s top China-policy maker Katharine Chang said China’s call for “cross-strait cooperation in maintaining the ancestral property in the South China Sea” is unacceptable.