How China uses commercial ships to pressure Taiwan without firing a shot

On one day in December last year, 2,000 Chinese fishing vessels gathered in a long, snaking formation north of Taiwan. The boats stayed in relatively steady positions, rather than sailing in fishing patterns, such as crisscross sailing patterns or paths that go back and forth. A similar manoeuvre involving more than 1,200 vessels occurred again in January. Analysts and intelligence sources told the ABC it is the clearest sign yet that China is weaponising commercial shipping. Thomas Shugart, a former US Navy officer and senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security, said the pattern was unprecedented. “If…