Aggression from Mainland China toward the island of Taiwan escalated greatly over the weekend. China considers the democratically governed island of Taiwan as its own territory and as ‘Taipei’. As a part of its military capability demonstration, it started a set of 3-day military drills around the Taiwan region.
As a part of these drills, it simulated certain precision strikes against Taiwan on the second day of drills (Sunday). The island’s defense ministry reported several air force sorties. It also said that they were monitoring China’s missile forces.
The tensions in the region rose earlier this month when Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen visited the United States to meet US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. The drills started just a day after the Taiwanese president returned back home.
Early Sunday at around 0800 hours, the Taiwanese defense ministry stated that they had recognized almost 70 Chinese aircraft including several Su-30 fighter jets and H-6 bombers along with 11 vessels around Taiwan.
The ministry mentioned that they are closely monitoring the movement and are paying special focus to the PLARF (People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force) which is the administration of the Chinese land missile system.
The ministry also said that about 20 military vessels, 10 from Taiwan and 10 from China were stuck in a stand-off near the median line of the Taiwan Strait which has acted as a barrier between the two countries in the region. The ships were not behaving provocatively, the ministry added.
Shandong, China’s aircraft carrier which had previously been stationed further away, has now moved closer to the Island of Taiwan. The ministry said that the aircraft carrier was now around 400 nautical miles away from the southeastern coast of the island and that it was doing drills as well.
The de facto US embassy in Taiwan on late Sunday reiterated that the United States was closely monitoring the Chinese drills near the Island and remained confident and comfortable that there were enough present resources and capabilities in the region to ensure peace and stability.
China in the last 5 years
It has significantly ramped up its presence militarily in the area. This has come in the form of regular military drills along with simulating targets in Taiwan, conducting war games, and doing regular flying missions around Taiwan while not mentoring its airspace.
The Taiwanese defense ministry also published a detailed map showcasing a few of the aircraft it had spotted in the last 24 hours encircling the Island. The map showed various aircraft including the Su-30s and J-11s crossing the Taiwan Strait’s median line.
Chinese state media made it clear that these aircraft were armed with live weapons. Taiwanese air force jets also regularly carry live weapons when these Chinese drills take place.
Read: China’s Aircraft Carriers Simulate Strikes on Taiwan as Drills Enter Third Day
