More than 30 Chinese aircraft reportedly crossed into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone on Thursday amid tensions between the two nations over disputed territories.
The incident occurred a day after U.S., Japanese, and Philippine coast guard ships conducted law enforcement drills near the disputed South China Sea.
According to Ministry of National Defense spokesman Sun Li-Fang, “a total of 37 Chinese military aircraft” entered Taiwan’s southwestern air defense identification zone.
“Some continued toward the western Pacific for long-range reconnaissance training,” Sun added, as reported by the Taipei Times.
China, meanwhile, reported that the recent patrols and exercises “served as deterrence against the rising tensions following U.S. provocations in the region.”
Despite the strait being regarded as international waters, the Chinese have been warning outside vessels that they are in Chinese territorial waters, to the point of threatening them with their armada.
This comes as U.S. allies are reportedly preparing for the possibility of war over Taiwan, thanks to the Biden administration’s meddling with both Taiwan and China.
Axios reported recently that several world leaders have started to distance themselves from the China-Taiwan sovereignty issue as tensions continue to rise between the U.S. and China.
Most recently, the U.S. accused China of provocation after a Chinese warship nearly collided with the USS Chung-Hoon.
Canada’s Global News reported that the Chinese destroyer sped up and cut in front of the U.S. ship’s bow, warning the latter ship that there would be a collision if it didn’t change course.
The Chinese ship was warned by the U.S. to steer clear of the destroyer, but at the last second, they changed course. The close call also reportedly led the Chung-Hoon to slow down and change its path.
HMCS Montreal Commander Paul Mountford called the incident “not professional” on the Chinese’s part, saying it was “clearly instigated by the Chinese.”
“The fact this was announced over the radio prior to doing it, clearly indicated this was intentional,” he added, according to the Canadian news outlet. “I am hoping that is an isolated incident that won’t happen again for us, because we have international law on our side. This is international waters.”
