Kinmen: Where two coastguards meet across a narrow sea
With a clear view of China's skyline, coastguard captain Huang Heng-chun guides his patrol vessel through choppy waters around the Kinmen islands administered by Taipei. Huang and his crew keep watch for China Coast Guard ships, which have been entering sensitive waters near Kinmen with growing frequency as Beijing increases pressure on Taiwan.
Sitting just two kilometres (1.2 miles) from mainland China at its closest point and about 200 kilometres from Taiwan's main island, Kinmen has long been a frontline in cross-strait tensions. In late October, AFP journalists joined Huang as he and his team scanned the surrounding seas for Chinese vessels after a spike in patrol activity following a fatal February 2024 chase.
What the coastguard is doing
Taiwan's coastguard conducts continuous law-enforcement patrols around Kinmen, supported by coastal radar and thermal-imaging systems to detect fishing boats, smugglers and swimmers. The agency now spends more effort shadowing Chinese coastguard ships and investigating suspicious vessels near Taiwan's subsea telecommunications cables.
'Their presence has become much more frequent,' Huang said, adding that Chinese ships enter Kinmen waters roughly four times a month. 'Our law-enforcement operations have become much more tense.'
Deputy director Chia Chih-kuo of the Coast Guard Administration's Kinmen–Matsu–Penghu branch said the service has become 'increasingly important' to national security, but warned that equipment and manpower are insufficient for the mission's rising complexity and that officials are seeking additional funding.
Asymmetric risk and restraint
Taiwan's coastguard is outgunned by China's vast fleet. When China deploys 1,000-tonne ships near Kinmen, Taiwan must respond with boats of about 100 tonnes — the largest vessels able to operate in these shallower approaches. Taiwanese crews rely on radios, loudspeakers and LED signs to order foreign vessels to leave; their boats are fitted with water cannon and a 20-millimetre static machine gun, but officers are careful to avoid actions that could trigger a wider confrontation.
'In most countries, the Chinese coastguard would be seen as a major regional navy,' said Alessio Patalano, a maritime strategy specialist at King's College London. 'You want to push back, but you can't push back too hard.'
Grey-zone tactics and local life
Analysts describe Beijing's patrols as part of 'grey-zone' operations — coercive measures that stop short of outright warfare but test responses and tactics that could be used in a blockade. Beijing has also pursued economic and infrastructure ties with Kinmen: the mainland supplies water to the islands, a ferry links residents with nearby Xiamen for shopping and business, and plans such as the unfinished Xiamen–Kinmen bridge and a new airport across the channel underscore growing connectivity.
Those ties shape local attitudes. Some residents say closer relations with China could reduce the risk of conflict. 'No one wants a war,' said a woman surnamed Chen, whose guesthouse overlooks Xiamen's skyline. Conversely, visiting Chinese tourists often express the view that Kinmen is culturally linked to the mainland.
Mission and message
Despite the delicate balance between deterrence and escalation, Huang stresses the coastguard's role: to defend Taiwan's 'sovereignty and jurisdiction.' 'It's a necessary act of national duty,' he said. 'As long as we're here doing our job, it shows we have both the authority and the ability to govern.'
Reporting by AFP; commentary from regional maritime experts. Translated and edited for clarity and flow.
