A Taiwanese top official acknowledged on Wednesday (May 29) that “some accidents” had indeed occurred involving a Chinese submarine in the Taiwan Strait last year, despite previous denials.

In August last year, the Taiwan Ministry of National Defense refuted rumors that a Chinese nuclear attack submarine had an accident, allegedly resulting in the death of all crew members. However, during a Legislative Yuan interpellation session on Wednesday, Taiwan National Security Bureau (NSB) Director-General Tsai Ming-yen became the first public official to confirm that a Chinese submarine had experienced issues last year, according to Tai Sounds.

During the meeting, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Wang Ting-Yu mentioned that the Daily Mail had published a report in August, claiming that a Chinese Type 093 (Shang-class) nuclear-powered attack submarine went missing while the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) was conducting exercises in the Taiwan Strait.

In October, the newspaper cited “a secret U.K. report” stating that the submarine had become entangled in an anti-submarine net in the Yellow Sea, causing all crew members to die after the vessel’s oxygen system failed.

There were additional reports of Chinese families being unable to contact their military relatives, and the fleet commander being punished. At that time, a U.S. reconnaissance plane specialized in detecting nuclear submarines reportedly flew close to the area, but there have been no further reports on the alleged incident.

Wang then inquired whether the NSB had any information on the situation.

Tsai responded with an awkward but polite smile, saying, “I have heard about this matter. To be honest, yes, we are aware of it.” 

Tsai further clarified that the general assessment indicates it was “probably not a serious shipwreck,” but that “some accidents” did occur. He noted that the vessel remains intact and that the NSB has continued to monitor the submarine’s position.