A video has been circulated in Chinese-language social media posts that claim it shows a New Year’s dance party on the Taiwanese navy ship ROCS Ma Kong.
But the claim is false. The video was taken at a club in Bangkok, Thailand, in September 2024. Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense also said the video was not taken at the ROCS Ma Kong.
The video was shared on X on Jan. 5, 2025.
“New Year’s dance party of Taiwan’s ROCS Ma Kong,” the caption of the video reads.
The 44-second video shows a group of people dressed in what appears to be navy uniforms dancing to music.
ROCS Ma Kong is a Kee Lung-class guided-missile destroyer in active service in Taiwan’s navy.
The Ma Kong has been involved in monitoring and responding to Chinese military activities near Taiwan. For instance, during the Joint Sword-2024A military exercise conducted by China around Taiwan, a Taiwanese sailor aboard the Ma Kong was photographed monitoring the movements of the Chinese destroyer Xian in waters near Taiwan.
In a 2022 incident, a recording featured a voice identifying the vessel as the Ma Kong, warning another ship that it was approaching the outer edge of Taiwan’s contiguous zone, 44.5 kilometers (27.6 miles) from the baseline.
However, the claim about the video taken in Ma Kong is false.
Club in Bangkok
Some X users said in the comment section of the post that the video was taken at a club in Bangkok, named “BEEF.BKK.”
A keyword search found that the club hosted a sailor-themed event in September 2024.
A clip of the event posted by one of the partygoers on Instagram shows that both the ceiling decorations and DJ booth in the club are very similar to those seen in the video posted on X.
A closer look at the video shows people in the video are wearing red bows around their necks, instead of the blue neckerchiefs with two white suns that are a part of standard Taiwanese navy uniforms.
Officials from Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense also dismissed the claim.
Translated by Shen Ke. Edited by Taejun Kang.
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