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Mr Chen was expected to land in Taiping Islet, the biggest island in the Spratlys, to inspect troops there before the Lunar New Year on Feb 7. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
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TAIPEI - TAIWAN President Chen Shui-bian has headed to the disputed Spratly islands in the South China Sea, media reported, in a move likely to spark tensions in the region.
Mr Chen left around 5.00am on his presidential jet on Saturday to a base in Taiwan's south where he would take an air force C-130 transport plane to the Spratlys, TVBS news channel said.
The station said Mr Chen was expected to land in Taiping Islet, the biggest island in the Spratlys, to inspect troops there before the Lunar New Year on Feb 7.
Local media said the trip is aimed at drumming up support for Mr Frank Hsieh, the candidate for Mr Chen's independence-leaning ruling Democratic Progressive Party in the March 22 presidential election.
Mr Hsieh is locked in a heated race with opposition Kuomintang's Ma Ying-jeou to succeed Mr Chen, who is to retire in May after eight years in office.
Presidential Office spokesman Lee Nan-yang was not immediately available for comment.
Taiwan, Vietnam, Brunei, China, Malaysia and the Philippines claim all or part of the potentially oil-rich Spratlys.
All claimants except Brunei have troops based on the archipelago of more than 100 islets, reefs and atolls, which have a total land mass of less than five square kilometres.
Taiwan's defence ministry reportedly began building a 1,150-metre-long runway in the fortified Taiping islet in mid-2006, despite opposition by Vietnam. The project is nearly complete.
Last week, a Taiwanese C-130 transport plane landed on the islet in a clandestine test flight that was protested by Vietnam.
The navy was sending a Kidd-class destroyer to the Spratlys for Mr Chen's visit. -- AFP
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