A “high-tech” Chinese government research ship, which is reportedly capable of spying, was tracked sailing off the coast of Australia, a United States ally in the South Pacific Ocean.
In Beijing, the Chinese Foreign Ministry claimed that the country conducted what it called “normal activities” at sea in accordance with international law. The Australian Defense Department did not immediately respond to Newsweek‘s request for comment via email.
Why It Matters
The presence of the Chinese research ship comes less than a month after the nation’s navy completed a circumnavigation of Australia. This saw its three-ship task group traveling from the Australian eastern seaboard to the western seaboard via the southern waters.
The scientific research vessel, Tan Suo Yi Hao, which means “Discovery One” literally, is viewed as a “spy ship” that has a dual purpose—mixed military and civilian uses—for conducting scientific research and gathering intelligence, Sky News Australia reported.
China’s dual-purpose research, which has potential applications for military development, has raised concerns in the U.S. as the geopolitical competition between the two countries intensified. Beijing claimed previously that its scientific research is for peaceful purposes.
What To Know
Using data captured from ship tracking online services, the Tan Suo Yi Hao was tracked leaving the city of Hong Kong, located on China’s southern coast, in early January and heading southward. It arrived in New Zealand in late February, a Newsweek‘s map shows.
The Chinese vessel, which is specialized in deep-sea exploration, conducted research with New Zealand scientists at the bottom of the Puysegur Trench, located 19,685 feet below sea level and to the south of the country, New Zealand news website Newsroom reported.
According to its operator, the state-run Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Deep-Sea Science and Engineering, the vessel is equipped with 11 laboratories and is the mother ship of two types of submersibles, reaching 14,763 feet and 32,808 feet below sea level, respectively.
On March 21, the Tan Suo Yi Hao was tracked departing from Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand, and sailed across the Tasman Sea, heading toward Australia to the west.
A Newsweek‘s map puts the Chinese ship to the southwest of Melbourne in southeastern Australia on March 28, within Australia’s 200-nautical-mile [230-mile] exclusive economic zone but well outside Australia’s territorial waters that extend 12 nautical miles [13.8 miles] from its shores.
Marine scientific research in the exclusive economic zone “shall be conducted with the consent of the coastal state,” says the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which lays down a comprehensive regime of law and order in the world’s oceans and seas.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday confirmed the presence of the Chinese vessel. While he suggested the situation is similar to Australian ships in the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait, he added that “I would prefer that it wasn’t there.”
Both the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait are off China’s coast. Beijing has voiced objection to what it called “external interference” in the two contested regions.
But Peter Dutton, the opposition leader of Australia, criticized Albanese on Tuesday for being weak on national security. “There’s a collection of intelligence and of course, there is a mapping of undersea cables,” he said, referring to the Chinese vessel’s activities.
Australia’s Special Broadcasting Service said the Chinese ship is expected to return home on April 30. It continued its westward voyage as it reached the southwest of Adelaide in South Australia as of Monday, operating 460 nautical miles [529 miles] off the city, the report added.
What People Are Saying
Anthony Albanese, Australian Prime Minister, said on Monday: “What our task is to do is to make sure that we represent Australia’s national interests … and I have every confidence, every confidence, in our Defense Force and our security agencies to do just that.”
Peter Dutton, Australian opposition leader, said on Tuesday: “It is unbelievable that the prime minister [Anthony Albanese] can’t explain to the Australian people what is happening here.”
Guo Jiakun, spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said on Monday: “Let me say more broadly that China carries out normal activities at sea in accordance with international law, including [United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea]. We hope Australia will have a right understanding of this and stop the groundless suspicion and speculations.”
What Happens Next
It remains to be seen whether the Chinese research ship will sail around Australia on its way home. A U.S. nuclear-powered submarine reached the allied country in late February, when it visited a naval base on the west coast of Australia.
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