The Ministry of National Defense (MND) warned about a renewed surge of Chinese military activity and live-fire drills around the nation, accusing Beijing of policy instability that presented a serious challenge to its neighbors.
The ministry on Thursday said it had detected a second day of large-scale Chinese military activities nearby, with 29 aircraft engaged in a “joint combat readiness patrol” with Chinese warships.
The day before, it warned of 43 Chinese military aircraft operating around the nation. Of these, 23 flew to the south of Taiwan through the Bashi Channel and then up along the east coast, but did not enter Taiwan’s air space, the ministry said.
Photo courtesy of the Ministry of National Defense
The ministry said that China carried out “multiple waves of live-fire drills” in the Yellow and Bohai seas near the Korean Peninsula and Japan during a visit last week by the chief of China’s southern military command to the US military in Hawaii.
China is doing all it can to build up its military while creating the illusion of dialogue, the ministry added.
The effort “highlights the hegemonic nature of an authoritarian regime that lacks policy stability, which poses a serious challenge to neighboring countries,” it said.
In Beijing, Chinese Ministry of National Defense spokesperson Zhang Xiaogang (張曉剛) defended the drills, saying they were a “legitimate” activity.
Wednesday’s flights were part of annual Chinese drills, a source familiar with the situation told Reuters, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army was conducting simulated attacks in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea to practice access denial and to “stop foreign assistance” in the event of conflict in the region, the source added.
The Chinese air force also held drills to seize “air dominance” in waters off Taiwan’s southwestern coast and practiced air refueling around the Bashi Channel, the source said.
Meanwhile, the MND yesterday said it detected 41 military planes and vessels in the vicinity of Taiwan in a 24-hour window ending at 6am yesterday, 32 of which crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait.
Additional reporting by CNA
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