Chinese military planes entered Taiwan during the crisis in Ukraine. Taiwan’s Defense Ministry reported that around nine planes entered their air identification zone just hours after Russia ordered a military operation in Ukraine.
The ministry revealed that the mission involved eight J-16 reconnaissance aircraft and one Y-8. According to the source, the plane flew over the northeast of the Pratas Islands – a territory controlled by Taiwan in the South China Sea.
In response, Taiwan deployed flights and jammed air defense missiles to warn Chinese aircraft. It came a day after China’s foreign minister said Wednesday that Taiwan was not Ukraine and had always been part of China. Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen called for heightened vigilance over military activities.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying dismissed concerns of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who said global consequences would occur if Western countries failed to support Ukraine.
“Taiwan is not Ukraine,” “Taiwan has always been an inalienable part of China,” Chinese spokeswoman Hua said in Beijing. But Taiwan has been governed separately since the Nationalists withdrew from China at the end of the Chinese Civil War.
Taiwanese officials are analyzing the situation and fear that China will take the Russian-Ukrainian situation as an advantage to invade Taiwan. In December, US defense officials said there was an urgent need to strengthen defenses in Taiwan. Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Ely Ratner said “strengthening Taiwan’s defenses is an urgent task.”
Source:
https://www.newsbreak.com/news/2524690099089/taiwan-reports-nine-chinese-aircraft-in-defense-zone?s=ws_native
