China carried out simulated air strikes on ‘key targets’ in Taiwan as its warships encircled the island nation for the second day, Asian news outlets confirm Sunday. “China’s military conducted mock attacks on key targets in and around Taiwan on Sunday, state media said, the second day of its planned three days of “encirclement” patrols and joint drills near the self-ruled island,” the newspaper Japan Times reported.
On Sunday Chinese fighter jets and bombers breached Taiwan’s air defense zone for the second day in a row. “Taiwan’s defence ministry said it had spotted 70 Chinese aircraft, including Su-30 fighters and H-6 bombers, as well as 11 ships, around the island on Sunday,” the Sky News (UK) reported Sunday.
The France24 TV channel reported Chinese naval encirclement of Taiwan on Sunday:
China’s war games sent planes, ships and personnel into “the maritime areas and air space of the Taiwan Strait, off the northern and southern coasts of the island, and to the island’s east”, the army said as it launched the exercises, engineered to flex Beijing’s military muscles in front of Taiwan and the world.A report from state broadcaster CCTV on Sunday said drills had “simulated joint precision strikes against key targets on Taiwan island and surrounding waters”, adding that forces “continued to maintain the situation of closely encircling the island”. (…)Exercises on Monday will include live-fire drills off the rocky coast of China’s Fujian province, about 80 kilometres (50 miles) south of Taiwan’s Matsu Islands and 190 kilometres from Taipei.”These operations serve as a stern warning against the collusion between separatist forces seeking ‘Taiwan independence’ and external forces and against their provocative activities,” said Shi Yin, a PLA spokesman.
China launched the 3-day military drill after Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen’s recent short visit to the U.S. where she met House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Angered by Wednesday’s meeting, Beijing dispatched “aircraft carrier toward Taiwan and launching live-fire exercises,” The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday.
Noting the Chinese live-fire drills on Saturday, The Associated Press reported:
China sent warships and dozens of fighter jets toward Taiwan on Saturday, the Taiwanese government said, in retaliation for a meeting between the U.S. House of Representatives speaker and the president of the self-ruled island democracy claimed by Beijing as part of its territory.The Chinese military announced the start of three-day “combat readiness patrols” as a warning to Taiwanese who want to make the island’s de facto independence permanent. The People’s Liberation Army gave no indication whether they might include a repeat of previous exercises with missiles fired into the sea, which disrupted shipping and airline flights. (…)On Saturday, eight warships and 71 planes were detected near Taiwan, 45 of which flew across the middle line of the strait that separates it from the mainland, the island’s Ministry of Defense said. It said they included Chengdu J-10, Shenyang J-11 and Shenyang J-16 jet fighters.Also Saturday, the navy planned to hold “live fire training” in Luoyuan Bay in Fujian province opposite Taiwan, the local Maritime Authority announced.
The Taiwan government described President Tsai’s stopover in New York City as a routine visit enroute her 10-day tour of Central America. “Tsai has routinely transited through the US on visits to Taiwan’s diplomatic allies and conducted face-to-face talks with the leaders of friendly governments to facilitate peace across the Taiwan Strait,” The Taipei Times reported Sunday, citing government sources.
As China’s key strategic ally Russia wages war to annex large parts of Ukraine, Taiwan fears that Beijing could invade the island nation which it regards as a part of the Communist-ruled mainland. According to Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense, Beijing could launch a “full-scale invasion” as early as 2025.
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