China Deploys Record 244 Vessels Around Taiwan in July; Maritime Militia Escorts Research Vessel for First Time

Taiwan's Coast Guard Administration reported August 28, 2026 that Chinese government vessels detected around Taiwan's main island hit a record 244 in July — nearly 8/day — up from 55 in June and 30 in May, and versus 58 in July 2025; roughly 60% were coast guard ships, the rest research and other official vessels, plus a further 152 in the first 21 days of August. Analysts flagged a distinct escalation within that total: the oceanographic vessel Xiang Yang Hong 03 operated over the Ryukyu and East Taiwan trenches within Taiwan's and Japan's EEZs, escorted by a China Coast Guard ship and — for the first time observed in Taiwan's waters — a maritime-militia fishing boat. Analysts (ingeniSPACE COO Jason Wang) assessed the mission was gathering hydrographic data to support PLA anti-submarine warfare and to deny the same access to the US and allies. A senior Taiwan Coast Guard official called the trend 'increasingly severe'; analysts and Western officials describe the sustained vessel buildup as a 'gray zone'/'quasi-quarantine' campaign to normalize Chinese presence short of a declared blockade.