Taiwan Coast Guard's large ship with hospital shown to Asian journalists

For the first time, the Taiwan Coast Guard showed Asian journalists one of their biggest ships, the CG5002, also known as Hsinchu.

In Jun Veneracion’s report on “24 Oras” on Friday, the coast guard ship is equipped with lifeboats, rescue boats, and three water cannons.

“It has two functions: the first is to help extinguish fires, and second, it can be a way to expel the illegal ship with power,” Taiwan Coast Guard's Huang Ting Chun said.

The CG5002 also features hospital rooms where both minor and major surgeries can be performed.

In the event a passenger experiences hypothermia, the vessel also has a rewarming room.

The CG5002 measures 126 meters in length, bigger than the biggest ship of the Philippine Coast Guard, the BRP Teresa Magbanua, which only measures 97 meters.

However, in comparison to Hsinchu, the Chinese Coast Guard’s longest ship is larger than the vessel, which is 165 meters in length.

The Philippines and China are embroiled in a maritime dispute in the West Philippine Sea, a portion of the South China Sea that is inside Manila's exclusive economic zone.

Meanwhile, China claims democratically run Taiwan as its own territory, which Taipei rejects.

“Taiwan believes that regional stability must be built not only through deterrence but also through practical cooperation and shared resilience,” Taiwan Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-Lung said. — Lyjah Tiffany Bonzo/VBL, GMA News