Chinese aircraft surround Taiwan after approval of US drone sales

Taipei. A fleet of more than 30 chinese aircraft flew over the surroundings of Taiwan during the last 24 hours, a few days after the US government approved the possible sale of a drone system and loitering missiles to the island, official sources reported this Friday.

In his last daily report, the Ministry of National Defense (MDN) of Taiwan reported the presence of 36 Chinese war aircraft in the vicinity of its territory, the highest number so far this month, among which were fighter jets, unmanned vehicles and helicopters.

A total of eighteen of those aircraft crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait, an unofficial border that had been respected by Taipei and Beijing for decades, approaching just 74 kilometers from the northern city of Keelung, where a military base is located, and another 107 kilometers from the western town of Taichung.

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According to the official report, these incursions took place between 06:40 and 18:08 on Thursday (22:40 GMT on Wednesday and 10:08 GMT on Thursday).

Another fleet of fifteen Chinese aircraft and drones entered the southwestern region of the self-proclaimed Taiwanese Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) and passed just 68 kilometers from Cape Eluanbi, at the southern tip of Taiwan, between 08:07 and 21:14 hours (00:07 and 13:14 GMT).

The MDN also detected a helicopter in the southeast of the ADIZ, specifically 176 kilometers from Cape Eluanbi.

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“The Armed Forces of the Republic of China (official name of Taiwan) have monitored the situation and used combat aircraft, Navy ships and coastal missile systems in response to the detected activities,” the military ministry said in a statement.

These movements occur after the US State Department approved the possible sale of a system of combat drones and loitering missiles to Taiwan for a value of 360.2 million dollars (about 336 million euros), in which marked the fifteenth sale of weapons to the island by the Administration of the American president, Joe Biden.

In a press conference, the spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Lin Jianassured this Wednesday that the United States decision constitutes a “serious violation of China’s sovereignty and security interests”, “seriously damages relations” between Beijing and Washington and “threatens peace and stability” in the Strait of Taiwan.

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Lin stated that this sale sends “a wrong signal” to the “separatist forces” on the island.

“The actions of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in Taiwan are destined to fail and will have detrimental consequences,” the spokesperson added, while reiterating that the Taiwan issue is “the most important red line in relations between China and China.” “EU”.

Taiwan – where the Chinese nationalist army withdrew after defeat at the hands of communist troops in the civil war (1927-1949) – has been governed autonomously since the end of the war, although China claims sovereignty over the island. which he considers a rebellious province for whose “reunification” he has not ruled out the use of force.

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