China claims self-ruled Taiwan as its territory and has vowed to take it one day.
(Representational)
Metropolis Desk-
In a span of around six hours, more than 30 Chinese airplanes flew into Taiwan’s air defense zone, the island’s defense ministry reported on Thursday, marking a dramatic increase in Chinese military intrusions in a single day.
Self-governing Taiwan is part of China’s territory, and China has threatened to one day annex it, using force if necessary.
Beijing’s airborne incursions into the island’s air defense identification zone have increased in recent years; in 2022, they nearly doubled compared to the previous year.
Sun Li-fang, a spokeswoman for Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense, reported on Thursday that “a total of 37 Chinese military aircraft” had entered Taiwan’s southwest ADIZ as of 5 am local time (2100 GMT).
Around 11 am, Sun stated that “some continued… towards the Western Pacific for long-range reconnaissance training.” Although Thursday’s surge of incursions wasn’t the most this year—that honor belongs to the 45 sorties on April 9—it did take place over a significantly shorter period. The ADIZ of Taiwan is substantially larger than its airspace, and it even extends into parts of the Chinese mainland.
Taiwan’s military has sent patrol planes, navy ships, and land-based missile systems in response, the Ministry of national defense stated on Twitter.
If the intrusions were still going on, they didn’t say.
According to analysts, China’s intensified probing of Taiwan’s defense zone is a component of larger “grey zone” measures used to maintain pressure on the island.
The incursions took place a day after the US, Philippines, and Japan finished their first-ever coordinated coastguard drills in the contentious South China Sea, which Beijing claims almost fully.
Taipei’s diplomatic engagements with other nations typically coincide with an increase in Chinese military exercises involving warplanes and ships in the area around Taiwan.
Source – NDTV
