China Accuses Taiwan of Political Manipulation Following Undersea Cable Damage

Beijing stated on Wednesday that Taiwan is "manipulating" potential Chinese involvement in the recent severing of an undersea communications cable. China claims Taiwan as its territory. The incident involved a China-linked cargo ship detained by Taiwan's coast guard on Tuesday after a nearby undersea cable to the Penghu Islands in the Taiwan Strait was disconnected. Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for China's Taiwan Affairs Office, stated that damage to undersea cables is a "common maritime accident," occurring frequently worldwide. She accused Taiwan's ruling party of exaggerating the situation for political gain before the facts are clear. Taipei has raised concerns about similarities between this incident and damage to undersea cables in the Baltic Sea following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, pointing to ships carrying "flags of convenience."