Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said it detected nine Chinese warships and 26 aircraft around the island on Tuesday (April 11), a day after Beijing announced the end of its major military maneuvers.
China mobilized “military aircraft this morning and crossed the median line from the north, center and south”the Ministry of Defense reported, adding that the vessels were detected around 11 a.m. local time (0300 GMT).
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Beijing launched military exercises on Saturday, dubbed « Joint Sword »around Taiwan for a period of three days, during which simulations of targeted strikes and an encirclement exercise of the autonomous island took place.
“The Taiwan region is a powder keg”
China regards Taiwan as a province that it has not yet managed to reunify with the rest of its territory since the end of the Chinese Civil War in 1949. It aims for this reunification by force if necessary.
91 aircraft
This show of force came after the meeting Wednesday in California between Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and the speaker of the American House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, to which Beijing had promised to react.
Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said it detected 12 warships and 91 aircraft on the last day of the operation on Monday, and 54 of the aircraft crossed the Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).
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China/United States: the battle for Taiwan
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen condemned the military maneuvers on Monday, hours after their official completion, saying China was using relations between Taipei and Washington as a “Excuse to launch military exercises, creating instability in Taiwan and the region”.
“Defend the Country”
“Although China’s military exercise has ended, our military and national security team will continue to stand by and defend the country.”Tsai Ing-wen explained in a Facebook post.
A l’issue de « Joint Sword »the Chinese military said it had “successfully completed” his military maneuvers.
Five questions about China’s military exercises around Taiwan
An American destroyer (warship) meanwhile carried out a “freedom of navigation operation” in an area of the South China Sea claimed by Beijing. A « intrusion » immediately denounced by China.
