China is laying the groundwork for long-term maritime spatial planning and resource management in waters east of Taiwan, according to a state media report published on June 18th, in what can be described as another line of Beijing’s effort to actively contest the island-nation’s maritime jurisdiction.
The report, published by Chinese state-affiliated outlet Yuyuan Tantian and carried by state broadcaster CCTV, said China’s Ministry of Natural Resources conducted a marine environmental survey on June 16th-18th “in the waters under its jurisdiction east of Taiwan Island.”
It described the exercise as part of a broader shift toward what it referred to as a “near-seas governance model” that treats the waters surrounding Taiwan as an area subject to regular administration, environmental management and resource planning.
The report noted that while China has conducted surveys in the waters east of Taiwan before, they were “mainly carried out in the form of special investigations,” which were on-off missions focused on specific issues. Whereas, the latest operation forms part of a recurring annual programme intended to support long-term governance and resource management.
It further described these planned “routine investigations” as a way to exercise “jurisdiction in practice” with the purpose of creating a detailed inventory of China’s marine assets that would underpin future development and conservation initiatives.
The article outlined a broad array of potential applications, including marine industries, offshore oil and gas exploration, marine biotechnology and pharmaceutical development, as well as environmental protection, ecosystem preservation and integrated management of key maritime zones.
The report also suggested that these routine surveys could collect data to support “a three-dimensional, layered marine economic plan” which could include projects like marine aquaculture in surface waters, as well as undersea infrastructure such as cross-sea bridges, submarine cables, pipelines and tunnels.
Most importantly, the article explicitly framed these planned routine surveys as part of China’s effort to reinforce what it considers its legal rights under international maritime law in the waters east of Taiwan.
“Based on China’s legitimate rights over the relevant waters, we are further exercising and consolidating our various rights in the waters east of Taiwan Island in accordance with the legal system of the exclusive economic zone,” the report by Yuyuan Tantian stated.
It asserted that waters east of Taiwan and its surrounding islands fall within China’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and cited ‘the Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Exclusive Economic Zone and Continental Shelf’ and ‘the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea’ (UNCLOS), to argue that Beijing enjoys sovereign rights over natural resource exploration, exploitation, conservation and management, as well as jurisdiction over marine scientific research and environmental protection in those waters.
The article also distinguished between sovereign rights over natural resource exploration, development, conservation and management, which it said were exclusive to China, and other activities such as scientific research, which could be conducted by foreign countries as well, but with approval from the Chinese government.
Moreover, similar to China’s ‘special maritime law-enforcement operations’ carried out by China Coast Guard (CCG) earlier this month in the waters east of Taiwan, the latest survey and the planned routine surveys were also linked to the Japan-Philippines maritime delimitation talks announced in May, which include waters that lie within Taiwan’s eastern EEZ.
“The Philippines and Japan are attempting to create a fait accompli in China’s waters and infringe upon China’s legitimate rights through bilateral arrangements,” said the report by Yuyuan Tantian.
“Unwilling to directly challenge my country’s territorial sovereignty, they attempt to manipulate resource development and utilization as well as their rights claims. This routine investigation by the Ministry of Natural Resources is precisely within this framework, taking concrete actions to solidify my country’s legitimate rights over its exclusive economic zone,” it continued.
Most importantly, this article by Yuyuan Tantian confirmed what the Author has been pointing out since January 2025, which is that China is slowly and gradually building a sustained presence around the island nation in a manner that impinges on Taiwan’s sovereignty but remains or appears far below the threshold of a conflict.
“Over the past period, from joint exercises around Taiwan to law enforcement patrols by the China Coast Guard, special maritime traffic law enforcement and survey operations organized by the Ministry of Transport, and routine investigations by the Ministry of Natural Resources, the ways in which we exercise jurisdiction over this sea area are constantly being enriched,” the article stated.
This is quite in line with what the Author had projected in January 2025 (refer to the image below 👇🏻)
The report further described a division of labour, wherein the China Coast Guard (CCG) would be responsible for law enforcement, while the Ministry of Natural Resources would oversee resource management and ecology, together incorporating waters east of Taiwan under what it referred to as the “normalized and systematic management.”
Notably, the CCTV report also said that there were attempts to interfere with China’s latest survey operations, without specifying who was involved in such attempts, and stated that the PLA Navy and China Coast Guard ensured “the safe and orderly progress” of the survey.
The survey was conducted by the East China Sea Bureau of China’s Ministry of Natural Resources, which dispatched the Xiangyanghong 22 oceanographic research vessel. According to ship-tracking data from Starboard Maritime Intelligence, two CCG ships provided an escort for the Xiangyanghong 22 throughout the survey operation.
And, while the Chinese state media did not identify the actors it said had attempted to “interfere” with the survey, Taiwan’s Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said separately that it had dispatched patrol vessels to drive away the Xiangyanghong 22 after it entered restricted waters off northeastern Taiwan on June 18th, employing radio warnings and manoeuvres designed to generate waves and disrupt its operations.
Taiwan’s Ocean Affairs Council also released a photo of Xiangyanghong 22, captured during this encounter, and the Taiwanese coast guard said that China was seeking to use survey vessels to navigate in Taiwan’s EEZ “as a pretext to engage in hegemonic expansion.”
“Our country has sovereign rights and jurisdiction in its eastern exclusive economic zone, and China’s attempts to harass Taiwan through maritime navigation or scientific research cannot change this indisputable fact,” the Taiwanese coast guard further said.
Taiwan had dispatched seven of its coast guard vessels in response to China’s special maritime law-enforcement operation in waters east of the island nation in the first week of June, which resulted in confrontation between the two sides.
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Japan reported in March that the Xiangyanghong 22 had been operating about 57 km (35 miles) northwest of the disputed Diaoyu Islands, also known as the Senkaku Islands. The Japanese coast guard ordered the vessel to halt its activities near some disputed islands, saying the ship was carrying out research without prior authorization from Tokyo.
Beijing has a track record of asserting its territorial claims under the guise of environmental conservation, including by deploying survey vessels to block energy exploration in the South China Sea by other countries, establishing a ‘nature reserve’ around the Philippine-claimed Scarborough Shoal, and accusing the Philippines of environmental damage at Philippine-held features that China also claims.
Tanmay Kadam is a geopolitical observer based in India. He has experience working as a Defence and International Affairs journalist for EurAsian Times. He can be contacted at tanmaykadam700@gmail.com.