Chinese missiles flew over Taiwan during military exercises launched by Beijing in response to the visit to Taipei by the leader of the US House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi.according to what the Chinese state press reported on Friday.
Pelosi angered Chinese authorities by visiting Taiwan, where she spent just 24 hours last Tuesday.
China, which considers Taiwan part of its territory, launched the most important military exercises in its history around the island on Thursday, in a total of six areas.
The Chinese military and government have yet to formally confirm that Chinese missiles flew over Taiwan during the drills, while Taiwanese authorities also refuse to confirm.
However, Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said in a statement Friday that Chinese “warplanes and warships” had crossed the “median line” of the Taiwan Strait, which separates the island from the mainland. The ministry denounced “highly provocative” military exercises.
(Keep reading: Taiwan: the 3 US-China crises over the island and how they were resolved).
The Japanese Defense Ministry said that of the nine missiles it detected, four “would have flown over the main island of Taiwan.”
“This time our exercises included live fire, and it was the first time they flew over Taiwan,” Meng Xiangqinq, a professor at the army-affiliated National Defense University, told Chinese state television CCTV.
The military exercises are scheduled to last until noon on Sunday, and China has so far ignored outraged protests from the United States and its allies.
‘irresponsible act’
Video published by 🇨🇳China showing footage of what it says are preparations for the big exercise it will conduct around 🇹🇼Taiwan. In the video we can see the J-20, the Chinese 5th generation fighter jet. pic.twitter.com/Lvgt22LXZJ
— 洒脱 − 綾部情報事務所 − (@shadatsu888) August 5, 2022
Ships and warplanes of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA, Chinese Army) crossed the middle line of the Taiwan Strait todaywhich the island’s Ministry of Defense described as “strong provocation”.
The military ministry reported in a statement released by the official CNA agency that at 11:00 local time (12:00 a.m. on Friday in Colombia) “several” Chinese planes and ships were sighted in waters near Taiwan, some of them “crossing the middle line”.
This division functions as an unofficial but tacitly respected border for China and Taiwan, which are experiencing one of their most tense moments after the visit to the island on Wednesday by the president of the US Legislature, Nancy Pelosi, to whom Beijing He warned that he would respond forcefully.
(Don’t stop reading: China initiates intimidation tactics against Taiwan and warns of escalation).
The movements of the Chinese Army are part of the military maneuvers that the PLA has been carrying out since yesterday and until next Sunday around Taiwan as a result of the US official’s trip, and which have so far included live fire and the launch of long-range missiles. scope.
The Taiwanese Ministry already denounced yesterday Thursday that 22 Chinese military planes crossed the median line on that daybut for the moment it has not detailed how many ships and aircraft did so today.
In response to the “highly provocative” Chinese maneuvers, the Taiwanese Army assured that it will increase its capacity and preparation to safeguard the island’s sovereignty “without escalating tensions or provoking conflicts that could lead to war.”
Yesterday’s exercises, which involved the closure of air and sea space in six areas around the island, included long-range artillery target practice, with “multiple types of conventional missiles”, as well as the aerial deployment of dozens of aircraft military between fighters and bombers.This is the first time that launches of this type have been recorded in the vicinity of Taiwan since the third Strait crisis between 1995 and 1997.
(We recommend: Taiwan: three keys to understand its strategic and economic importance).
Analysts quoted by the Hong Kong newspaper South China Morning Post ventured that the People’s Liberation Army (EPL, Chinese Army) could today use bomber planes with long-range cruise missiles such as the CJ-20.
The president of Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen, described in the last hours the Chinese maneuvers as an “irresponsible act” that fuels tensions in the Indo-Pacific, demanded restraint from Beijing and asked for the support of the international community.
He also said that Taiwan will not contribute to the escalation of tensions but will defend its sovereignty.
China, which described Pelosi’s visit as a “farce” and “deplorable betrayal”, claims sovereignty over the island and considers Taiwan a rebellious province since the Kuomintang nationalists withdrew there in 1949, after losing the civil war against the communists
AFP and EFE
You can also read:
– When and how China lost Taiwan (and what is the status of the ‘rogue island’).
– Pelosi will probably visit the border area between the two Koreas.
– Why is the world tensely awaiting China’s response to Pelosi’s challenge?
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