Military maneuvers in the Western Pacific: 35 Chinese fighter jets spotted off the coast of Taiwan

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The Ministry of Defense in Taipei said some of the fighter jets then flew to the Chinese aircraft carrier “Shandong” for military maneuvers in the western Pacific.

The ministry published an undated photo showing “Shandong” being observed by a Taiwanese warship. The military is monitoring the situation, the report said. Aircraft, naval vessels and land-based missile systems were ready to “respond to these activities” if necessary.

China “on constant alert”

China’s Eastern Command, which organizes exercises around Taiwan, said on Wednesday that an “air unit” recently conducted an exercise with a range of “thousands of kilometers.” Taiwan itself was not mentioned.

China said this weekend it had put its armed forces on “constant alert” following the passage of a US naval ship and a Canadian frigate.

To Beijing’s annoyance, the US and its Western allies have recently repeatedly sent ships into the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, a disputed maritime area that is strategically and economically extremely important to neighboring countries. According to the American view, both cases are international waters.

Since the political split between mainland China and Taiwan in 1949, Beijing has viewed the democratic, self-governing island as a breakaway territory that it wants to reunite with the mainland. In recent years, the presence of Chinese warships and military aircraft around Taiwan has increased significantly.

(AFP)

Source: Blick