By Rashneel Kumar of 
China’s research/survey vessel Da Yang Hao is transiting through Cook Islands waters, conducting seabed surveys. Photo: Cook Islands News / SBMA
A Chinese research vessel, which has been previously linked to potential naval interests and military data collection, is transiting through and conducting seabed surveys in Cook Islands waters as part of a government-approved collaborative research mission.
The research/survey vessel Da Yang Hao is the second marine scientific research collaboration for Cook Islands Seabed Minerals Authority (SBMA), the government agency tasked with the management and regulation of all seabed minerals activity.
This follows a three-week expedition to explore the country's deep-sea habitats onboard the US research vessel Nautilus last month.
The latest collaboration comes amid reports that scientific findings from China's research ships, including Da Yang Hao, could also serve their naval interests, including how China might deploy its submarines in the Pacific or track stealthier American ones, the New York Times reported in July. Media reports in 2021 also accused the Da Yang Hao of entering Palau's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) without permission.
SBMA commissioner Beverly Stacey-Ataera said that they are aware of the reports.
"All marine research undertaken in Cook Islands waters is subject to government approval processes. We're aware of the reports you referenced and have reviewed them carefully," Stacey-Ataera told Cook Islands News.
"We continue to work closely with our counterparts in New Zealand and other partners to ensure full oversight of research activities in our jurisdiction."
In September, local environment group Te Ipukarea Society (TIS) raised concerns about the two global superpowers, China and the United States, actively exploring and investing in deep sea mining technology in the region.
According to TIS, many of the Chinese research vessels are operated by state-affiliated organisations with close ties to the military, and the data collected on deep-sea currents and depths "can be used for both commercial mining and military purposes, such as submarine navigation".
"Certainly, both the US and Chinese vessels have collected, or will be collecting, information that may be useful in any sort of maritime conflict that might occur in the future," a TIS spokesperson told this newspaper last week.
R/V Da Yang Hao departed Suva on 31 October, and its reported estimated time of arrival to Rarotonga is Thursday night local time (Friday NZT), according to global ship tracker Marine Traffic.
An official welcoming ceremony will be hosted by SBMA on Saturday morning, attended by Prime Minister and Minister Responsible for Seabed Minerals Mark Brown and the Vice Minister, Ministry of Natural Resources of China, followed by a guided VIP tour onboard the vessel. Public tours will be available later in the day, SBMA said.
The latest survey is a collaboration between SBMA, the China Deep Ocean Affairs Administration (CDOAA) and the First and Second Institutes of Oceanography (FIO, SIO), a partnership which was established during Brown's state visit to China in February this year.
According to SBMA, this "opportunistic cruise" is transiting from Suva to Rarotonga, conducting seabed surveys using deep-towed cameras, sediment samplers and MBES (multibeam echosounder) systems.
Seven Cook Islands representatives are participating onboard in both sampling and analysis alongside their international counterparts.
"These partnerships offer a major opportunity to expand our ocean knowledge at minimal national cost," SBMA said.
Stacey-Ataera assured that information collected from this expedition will be publicly available.
"Unfortunately, this vessel doesn't have streaming capabilities of the Nautilus," she responded when asked if the expedition would be livestreamed.
"However, as this is a research mission, not a commercial operation, all information collected will be publicly available - similar to the Nautilus expedition data."
According to a New York Times article published in July titled, 'China surveys seabeds where naval rivals may one day clash', the Chinese research ships, including Da Yang Hao, are ranging farther and probing deeper, gathering information that could expand understanding of marine life and the impact of climate change.
"But their findings could also serve China's naval interests, including how it might deploy its submarines in the Pacific or try to track stealthier American ones," it said.
"The ships have been studying waters that China's navy considers strategically vital, including off Taiwan's east coast and about 250 miles east and west of Guam, according to ship position data provided by Starboard Maritime Intelligence, a company with offices in New Zealand and Washington.
"The ships made passes in parallel lines or in a tight grid, precise patterns that experts said suggested a methodical effort to collect information about the seabed that could, among other things, support military operations.
"Last February, Da Yang Hao sailed along Taiwan's east coast, tracing a series of parallel lines over five days."
