China sent 56 fighter jets to Taiwan air defense zone | Autonomous island suffered three consecutive days of military harassment

Taiwan reported 56 Chinese military jets entered its air defense zone on Monday in the biggest show of force against the Autonomous Island and after three consecutive days of military harassment. Very attentive to what is happening in Taiwan, The United States attacked China on Sunday for its “provocative” and “destabilizing” military activity.. It must be remembered that Washington is Taipei’s largest arms supplier.

Since last Friday, its national holiday, China has been conducting aerial maneuvers around Taiwan. Beijing considers the island of 23 million as part of its territory and threatens to conquer it by force if necessary.. Since Xi Jinping took command of the Asian giant in 2012, Chinese military planes have stormed this air defense area almost daily.

Nuclear capable bombers

Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said on Monday that 36 fighters, 12 nuclear-capable H-6 bombers and four other planes entered the air defense identification zone (ADIZ) from Taiwan. At night, four other fighters burst into space. The Taiwanese Air Force mobilized fighter jets and monitored the Chinese fleet on its radar systems.

Maps provided by the Taiwanese Ministry of Defense show that Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force flights arrive near Pratas Island, which sits high in the South China Sea and is actually closer to Hong Kong than Taiwan. This island has no permanent residents, but is home to a small Taiwanese military contingent and has an airstrip. Experts point out that it is flat and that it would be difficult to defend.

This recent Chinese show of force began on Friday, commemorating the Chinese National Day, with a record incursion of 38 military planes. On Saturday, Taiwan denounced a new incursion of 39 planes and accused Beijing of “intimidation” and “disturbing regional peace”. “It is clear that the international community increasingly rejects these behaviors of China”The prime minister told reporters Su Tseng-chang.

America’s “worry”

The air movements led the spokesman for the State Department of the United States, Ned Prize, to warn that Chinese activity threatens the stability of the region. “The United States is very concerned about the provocative military activity of the People’s Republic of China near Taiwan”Price said in a statement on Sunday, adding: “We urge Beijing to end its military, diplomatic and economic pressure.”

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China, in response to the United States’ statement, said that it was Washington that provoked and undermined regional peace, with its arms sales to Taiwan and the warships that regularly sailed the Taiwan Strait.. “China resolutely opposes it and is taking the necessary countermeasures,” the ministry added.

These aerial maneuvers took place after Last Monday, the UK sent a warship to the Taiwan Strait for the first time since 2008, the sea which separates this island from mainland China and which Beijing considers a very sensitive maritime passage. The Chinese military then accused the British government of acting with “the malicious intent to sabotage peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait”.

In recent years, Canadian, French and Australian warships have also crossed the Taiwan Strait, which has also sparked strong protests from the Chinese government. The United States and other countries consider this area to be international waters and therefore open to everyone.

US military officials say they fear China is considering invading the island. In 2020, 380 Chinese Air Force planes were detected in the Taiwan Air Defense Zone. So far this year, there are already more than 600.

A long-standing conflict

Taiwan and China were separated during the civil war between nationalists and communists in 1949. However Taiwan, a democracy of 23 million inhabitants, lives under the constant threat of a Chinese invasion, which sees the island as a capricious territory. Beijing has increased pressure on Taipei since the 2016 election of President Tsai Ing-wen, who says she sees the island as “independent” and not part of “one China.”

Under President Xi Jinping, Chinese fighter jets pass through the Taiwan Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) almost daily.. ADIZ is not the same as Taiwan’s airspace, but includes a larger area that overlaps part of mainland China’s air defense identification area and even part of its territory.

Protecting Taiwan is an issue that calls on Washington and a growing number of Western countries to join the United States in “Freedom of Navigation” exercises, which aim to counter Beijing’s claims to the South China Sea and the Strait of China. Taiwan.

Ned Price reiterated on Sunday that the United States “will continue to help Taiwan maintain sufficient self-defense capabilities.” “The United States’ commitment to Taiwan is solid as a rock and contributes to the maintenance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and throughout the region,” added the State Department official.

Taiwan is one of the main causes of conflict between China and the United States, mainly due to the fact that Washington is Taiwan’s main arms supplier and would be its biggest military ally in the event of any war with China..