The Chinese military’s record number of incursions into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ) has undermined peace in the region, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said yesterday, warning Beijing against further actions that could accidentally spark conflict across the Taiwan Strait.
“Chinese aggression has severely undermined regional peace and stability,” Tsai said at the weekly meeting of the Democratic Progressive Party’s Central Standing Committee. “Beijing must refrain from going too far and accidentally sparking conflict across the Strait.”
A total of 149 Chinese aircraft entered Taiwan’s ADIZ over four days — 38 on Friday, 39 on Saturday, 16 on Sunday and 56 on Monday — prompting expressions of concern from countries such as the US, Australia and Japan.
Photo: EPA-EFE / Ministry of National Defense
Germany on Monday also weighed in, with German Foreign Office deputy spokesman Christofer Burger expressing Berlin’s “great concern” over the rising tensions between the two sides of the Strait.
Beijing’s disregard for regional security and stability, and its provocative aircraft incursions have met with serious concern and condemnations from the international community, ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou (歐江安) said in a statement.
Germany is a like-minded partner, with peoples in both countries maintaining solid friendship and close exchanges, Ou said, adding that Taiwan would be happy to engage in talks on regional security issues with Germany and other democratic partners to defend peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region.
In other developments, the military yesterday publicly confirmed for the first time the existence of the “Yun Feng” (雲峰, Cloud Peak) medium-range surface-to-surface missile, which has been under development since the 1990s.
Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) mentioned the missile during a joint meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Foreign and National Defense Committee and Finance Committee.
When asked by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) about the development and capabilities of the Yun Feng missile, Chiu was unwilling to reveal any details, saying only that the military is still “working on it.”
It was the first time the Ministry of National Defense has publicly acknowledged the existence of the missile, which is said to have a range of up to 1,500km.
Local media speculated last year that the missile was tested in April last year, but the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology refused to comment on the issue.
The Yun Feng missile has reportedly been under development since the 1990s and is designed to strike land-based targets inside China, local and foreign media reports have said.
Capable of hitting strategic targets such as airports, harbors and command centers in inland China, the Yun Feng missile is a key part of Taiwan’s asymmetric warfare plan to erode China’s combat capabilities, said Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a senior researcher at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research.
LOW RISK: Most nations do not extradite people accused of political crimes, and the UN says extradition can only happen if the act is a crime in both countries, an official said China yesterday issued wanted notices for two Taiwanese influencers, accusing them of committing “separatist acts” by criticizing Beijing, amid broadening concerns over China’s state-directed transnational repression. The Quanzhou Public Security Bureau in a notice posted online said police are offering a reward of up to 25,000 yuan (US$3,523) for information that could contribute to the investigation or apprehension of pro-Taiwanese independence YouTuber Wen Tzu-yu (溫子渝),who is known as Pa Chiung (八炯) online, and rapper Chen Po-yuan (陳柏源). Wen and Chen are suspected of spreading content that supported secession from China, slandered Chinese policies that benefit Taiwanese and discrimination against Chinese spouses of
ALIGNED THINKING: Taiwan and Japan have a mutual interest in trade, culture and engineering, and can work together for stability, Cho Jung-tai said Taiwan and Japan are two like-minded countries willing to work together to form a “safety barrier” in the Indo-Pacific region, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) yesterday said at the opening ceremony of the 35th Taiwan-Japan Modern Engineering and Technology Symposium in Taipei. Taiwan and Japan are close geographically and closer emotionally, he added. Citing the overflowing of a barrier lake in the Mataian River (馬太鞍溪) in September, Cho said the submersible water level sensors given by Japan during the disaster helped Taiwan monitor the lake’s water levels more accurately. Japan also provided a lot of vaccines early in the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic,
PROMOTION: Travelers who want a free stopover must book their flights with designated travel agents, such as Lion Travel, Holiday Tours, Cola Tour and Life Tours Air Canada yesterday said it is offering Taiwanese travelers who are headed to North America free stopovers if they transit though airports in Japan and South Korea. The promotion was launched in response to a potential rise in demand for flights to North America in June and July next year, when the US, Canada and Mexico are scheduled to jointly host the FIFA World Cup, Air Canada said. Air Canada offers services to 13 of the 16 host cities of the tournament’s soccer games, including Toronto and Vancouver; Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey in Mexico; Atlanta, Georgia; Boston; Dallas; Houston;
The US approved the possible sale to Taiwan of fighter jet spare and repair parts for US$330 million, the Pentagon said late yesterday, marking the first such potential transaction since US President Donald Trump took office in January. "The proposed sale will improve the recipient's capability to meet current and future threats by maintaining the operational readiness of the recipient's fleet of F-16, C-130," and other aircraft, the Pentagon said in a statement. Trump previously said that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) has told him he would not invade Taiwan while the Republican leader is in office. The announcement of the possible arms
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