Charge against Chinese captain – Diepresse.com

After several incidents with severed underwater cables off Taiwan, the public prosecutor once for the first time raised charges against a Chinese ship captain. The investigators in the city of Tainan accuse the man of deliberately damaging a data cable in February. The captain was suspected that the ship he had led had left an anchor near the cable off the southwest coast of Taiwan.

According to the investigators, the captain asserts his innocence. However, he refuses to reveal the identity of the ship owner. Seven other crew members would not be charged and brought to China, according to the public prosecutor.

The crew headed for the “Hong Tai 58” ship registered in Togo, which was confiscated by the Taiwanian authorities. According to the coast guard, the « Hong Tai 58 » was near the cable when it was cut. The crew did not respond to repeated calls to the coast guard.

Is Russia behind it?

The incidents on the coasts of Taiwan are similar to a series of incidents in the Baltic Sea. Data cables were cut or damaged by merchant ships. Investigators assume sabotage files and suspects Russia to put them behind it.

Taiwan has already reported five incidents with damaged cables this year. The island nation is considered by China as a renegade province. The People’s Republic has not excluded the use of military violence to reintegrate the democratically ruled Taiwan.

The Chinese office for Taiwan affairs initially did not respond to a request for comment. For the time being, the Reuters news agency tried in vain to find the ship owner or lawyers representing him for comment. (APA/Reuters)