A Vietnamese fishing vessel rammed a Royal Thai Navy patrol ship while attempting to escape capture during an operation against illegal fishing earlier this week.
The Thai Navy confirmed the incident on Feb 26, stating that four crew members were arrested, and the vessel was seized for legal action.
Thai authorities had been monitoring a group of 10 foreign fishing boats conducting unauthorised activities and launched an enforcement mission to intercept them.
Since February 22, authorities had been tracking Vietnamese fishing vessels engaged in illegal fishing, including pair trawling and light-lure squid fishing, near Thailand’s southeastern maritime boundary with Cambodia.
These boats entered Thai waters at night to fish and returned beyond the boundary by daybreak to avoid detection.
The First Naval Area Command, in coordination with the Maritime Enforcement Command Centre (MECC), launched an operation in the early hours of February 27.
The Royal Thai Navy deployed the patrol vessel T.264 and the naval patrol ship HTMS Thepha, supported by aerial surveillance, to stop the illegal activity.
By 4:00 AM, the Thai Navy located the Vietnamese fishing fleet and attempted to intercept them. Despite warning shots being fired using M16 rifles, most of the fishing boats fled beyond the maritime boundary. One vessel, however, was unable to escape and was successfully detained.
While being escorted, the detained fishing boat made a sudden hard turn and rammed into HTMS Thepha, causing structural damage to the patrol ship.
The four crew members onboard were immediately arrested, and the boat was taken into custody. By 5:00 PM, the vessel was towed to a multi-purpose station at Khlong Yai, Trat province, where further legal action would be taken.
Vice Admiral Arpa Chaphanont, Commander of the First Naval Area Command and Director of MECC Region 1, confirmed that illegal incursions by Vietnamese fishing boats remain a serious concern.
He stated that this was the first such capture in 2025 under his command, and the Royal Thai Navy will take decisive steps to prevent further violations.
Thai authorities plan to formally report the incident to the Thai government and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to address the issue with Vietnam diplomatically.
Reference: BangkokPost, PattayaMail
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