The Ministry of National Defense yesterday said that it detected 14 Chinese air force planes operating around Taiwan and carrying out “joint combat readiness patrols” with Chinese warships.
China has over the past four years regularly sent warplanes and warships into the skies and waters around Taiwan, as it seeks to assert sovereignty claims that the Taipei government rejects.
The ministry said that starting at about 1pm yesterday, it had detected 14 Chinese aircraft — including J-16 fighters and drones — operating off northern and southwestern Taiwan.
Photo: Chang Chia-ming, Taipei Times
Nine of those aircraft crossed the Taiwan Strait’s median line, or areas close by, working with Chinese warships to carry out “joint combat-readiness patrols,” the ministry added.
There was no immediate response from the Chinese Ministry of National Defense. China is in the middle of its week-long Lunar New Year holiday.
Taiwan sent its own forces to monitor, its defense ministry said.
The Strait’s median line once served as an unofficial barrier between the two sides, but Chinese planes now regularly fly over it. China says it does not recognize the line’s existence.
Taiwan last month elected Vice President William Lai (賴清德) as its next president — a man China describes as a dangerous separatist.
Lai, who takes office in May, has offered talks with China, which have been rejected.
He says only Taiwanese can decide their future.
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