Maneuvers which are worrying, and which recall the threat that China poses to Taiwan. Twenty military planes from Beijing have been detected around the island since nightfall on Thursday, the Taiwanese Ministry of Defense announced. Earlier this Thursday, March 21, 32 Chinese fighter planes had already been spotted around Taiwan, the second largest deployment since the start of the year.
To this, it should be added that at 6 a.m. this Thursday local time, the island’s Ministry of Defense also detected no less than five warships operating around Taiwan, according to a press release.
Twenty planes “crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait”, an unofficial demarcation between China and Taiwan that the former does not recognize, the ministry said. Taiwan’s armed forces “monitored the situation and used (patrol) aircraft, naval vessels and coastal missile systems in response to the detected activities,” according to the statement.
Repeated incidents
On two other occasions, at the end of January and the beginning of February, 33 Chinese warplanes were spotted around Taiwan, the highest number of these aircraft in this area since the start of the year. These deployments were noted shortly after the presidential election of January 13, won by former vice-president Lai Ching-te, who was very little appreciated by Beijing.
Last month, Taipei announced that 11 Chinese warships had been detected around Taiwan, the highest figure this year, while a row with Beijing over a fishing boat incident increases the tensions. On February 14, this ship was chased by the Taiwanese coast guard for having, according to them, entered the waters of Kinmen, a small archipelago administered by Taipei but located only five kilometers from the city of Xiamen, in the Fujian province of China.
A collision then occurred and the four people on board fell into the water, two of whom died. The other two, rescued, were arrested before being able to return to mainland China. Beijing accused Taiwanese authorities of “seeking to evade responsibility and hide the truth” about the incident, while a Taiwanese coast guard official said the boat involved was zigzagging and had “lost control”. balance” before capsizing. Taiwan also detected a record eight Chinese balloons on two consecutive days during the Lunar New Year holiday last month, with some flying directly over that island.