The president of Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen, condemned last Wednesday night via Twitter the Russian actions for “attacking Ukrainian sovereignty”, while assuring that the island “will strengthen its response to cognitive warfare”.
(Read: Biden agrees to sanctions with G7 after Russia’s attack on Ukraine)
(Due to the public interest in the events between Russia and Ukraine, all of our coverage of that invasion and related actions will be freely accessible to all readers of TIME.)
(Don’t Miss: Why Does Russia Want to Invade Ukraine? Here’s What You Need to Know)
Taiwan’s air force warned on Thursday that nine Chinese planes entered its air defense zone., the Defense Ministry said, on the same day Russia invaded Ukraine, a crisis closely watched in Taipei. Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory, has complained about such regular Chinese air force missions for the past two years.
The number of aircraft involved was well below that of the last large-scale raid, 39 Chinese aircraft on January 23, and since then such overflights have been sporadic with far fewer aircraft.
The ministry said that the latest mission involved eight Chinese J-16 fighters and a Y-8 reconnaissance aircraft, that flew over an area northeast of the Taiwan-controlled Pratas Islands in the upper reaches of the South China Sea.
Taiwanese fighters were sent to warn Chinese planes and air defense missiles were deployed to “monitor activities”, the ministry said.
Taiwan has been eyeing the Ukraine crisis warily, nervous that China might try to seize the moment to do the same to the island. While Taipei has not reported any unusual moves by Chinese forces, the government has raised its alert level.
China has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control and routinely condemns US arms sales or other displays of support from Washington.
A prelude to Chinese aerial reconnaissance
Hours before the military action, it had been reported from Taiwan that “Beijing could take advantage of the situation in Ukraine to start a cognitive war with Taiwan to convince the island’s inhabitants that the United States would not honor its commitment to defend the island,” a Taiwanese national security official told the local news agency CNA.
The Chinese activities would use information about the conflict in Ukraine to “sow division” between Taiwan and the United States and to promote “reunification with China,” it added.
The official, who preferred to remain anonymous, assured that the situation in Ukraine “is not comparable to that in Taiwan” and that the US commitment to defending the island “is firm.”
About Taiwan, Washington said it will work with partners inside and outside the region to maintain peace and stability in the strait that divides the island from China.
President Tsai Ing-wen ordered all military and security units that “must increase their vigilance and early warning on military developments around the Taiwan Strait.” This, with an emphasis on possible Chinese actions.
According to his vision, although Taiwan and Ukraine are different in terms of geography and international supply chains, they are similar “in the face of foreign forces that try to manipulate the situation.”
Another fear of the island is that the United States will put all its efforts in Eastern Europe and neglect that region of Asia. It sees the North American giant as the world’s greatest military power, but facing two war conflict fronts would be almost impossible.
China claims for itself the sovereignty of Taiwan, which it considers a rebellious province for whose reunification it has not ruled out the use of force.
The island is one of the main sources of conflict between China and the United States, mainly because Washington is Taiwan’s main arms supplier and would be its greatest military ally in the event of a war with China.
In 1979, Washington recognized Beijing as the only Chinese government with the understanding that Taiwan would have a peaceful future. However, the Taiwan Relations Act of that year does not guarantee that the United States will intervene militarily if the People’s Republic of China attacks the island, but it does not rule it out either, since it simply commits to “help Taiwan defend itself”.
INTERNATIONAL WRITING
*With information from EFE and El Comercio (GDA)
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