Taipei, Sept. 14 -- Taiwan's Coast Guard Administration (CGA) confirmed Saturday that it had dispatched vessels to repel both a Chinese coast guard ship and a Chinese fishing boat operating near Dongsha Island, heightening maritime tensions in the South China Sea, as reported by Focus Taiwan.

According to Focus Taiwan, the Chinese coast guard vessel was detected at 6:15 a.m. by the CGA's Dongsha-Nansha Branch on Thursday, some 28 nautical miles (52 kilometres) northeast of Dongsha, edging close to the island's restricted waters that extend 24 nautical miles from shore. In response, the CGA deployed its 2,000-tonne cutter Tainan to shadow the ship. The vessel ultimately left the area by 2:39 pm Friday, following nearly a full day of monit...