(Taipei) The Chinese military has sent 71 planes and 7 ships to Taiwan in a 24-hour show of force, the Taiwanese Ministry of Defense revealed on Monday, after China expressed anger over the provisions related to Taiwan in a US annual defense spending bill passed on Saturday.
China’s military harassment of self-governing Taiwan, which it claims is its own territory, has intensified in recent years, and the Communist Party’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has sent planes or ships to island almost daily.
Between 6 a.m. Sunday and 6 a.m. Monday, 47 of the Chinese planes crossed the median of the Taiwan Strait, an unofficial border once tacitly accepted by both sides, according to Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense.
Among the aircraft sent by China to Taiwan were 18 J-16 fighter jets, 11 J-1 fighters, 6 Su-30 fighters and drones.
Taiwan said it was monitoring Chinese movements through its land-based missile systems, as well as on its own navy ships.
PHOTO GONG YULONG, ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
Chinese jets in operation
“This is a firm response to the current escalation and provocation between the United States and Taiwan,” Shi Yi, a spokesperson for the PLA’s Eastern Theater Command, said Sunday evening, adding that the The PLA was conducting joint combat patrols and joint strike drills in the waters around Taiwan.
Shi Yi was referring to the US defense spending bill, which calls China a strategic challenge. Regarding the Indo-Pacific region, the legislation allows for increased security cooperation with Taiwan and requires expanded cooperation with India on emerging defense technologies, preparedness and logistics.
The Chinese military has often used large military exercises as a show of force in response to the US government’s actions in favor of Taiwan. It conducted live-fire military exercises in August in response to US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan. Beijing sees foreign government visits to the island as de facto recognition of the island as independent and a challenge to China’s claim to sovereignty.