Mainland backs coast guard patrols in Xiamen-Kinmen waters

On Sunday, a Chinese mainland spokeswoman expressed support for the coast guard authority in East China's Fujian province to conduct patrols after the deaths of two mainland fishermen in near waters.

The China Coast Guard announced earlier on Sunday that the coast guard authority in Fujian will strengthen its maritime law enforcement capabilities and conduct regular patrols in the waters near Xiamen and Kinmen to further maintain order in the areas and safeguard the safety of fishermen's lives and property.

The measure came after a fishing boat from the mainland was forcefully driven away by Taiwan authorities in the waters near Kinmen on Wednesday afternoon, causing all four people on board to fall into the sea, resulting in the two fatalities.

Zhu Fenglian, a spokeswoman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said: "The violent expulsion of the boat by Taiwan authorities was a callous act with disregard for human life".

"It caused strong indignation across the mainland, seriously harming the feelings of compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, and severely damaging cross-Strait relations," she said.

The patrols conducted by mainland's maritime law enforcement authorities are conducive to maintaining normal order in the waters and ensuring the safety of mainland fishermen's lives and property, she added.