70% in Taiwan view Chinese coast guard patrols as ‘ill will’: MAC poll

Seven in 10 people in Taiwan view recent Chinese coast guard patrols in waters east of Taiwan as an act of “ill will,” according to a Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) poll released Thursday.The survey found that 70.5 percent of respondents regarded the patrols as malicious, while 7.5 percent considered them an act of goodwill and 22 percent had no opinion.The question was included amid a series of operations by Chinese coast guard, other government and research vessels in waters east of Taiwan since June, including what Beijing has described as “special maritime law-enforcement operations.” The name and logo of the Mainland Affairs Council are pictured on a podium at the council in Taipei in an undated photograph. Photo: Taipei Times Taiwan authorities have accused Beijing of using such oper