The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducted air force exercises around Taiwan this weekend, as well as near South Korea and Japan, releasing a video of the drills.
The exercises follow a threat of senior Chinese diplomat Li Kexin that China will use military force against Taiwan if American Navy ships make a port call to the island.
The Taipei Times reports that, according to PLA officials, “Fighter and bomber aircraft flew through the Tsushima Strait that separates South Korea from Japan and into international waters in the Sea of Japan, adding that the Sea of Japan is not Japan’s, and the drills were lawful and reasonable.” Japan and South Korea both responded angrily. Seoul’s government told reporters that it had used a hotline to warn China to cease violating its airspace and scrambled jets in response.
The PLA also sent its air force “through the Bashi Channel between Taiwan and the Philippines, and then returning to base through the Miyako Strait, to Taiwan’s north and near Japan’s southern islands.” The South China Morning Post notes that the Chinese government also recently released video of “encirclement patrols” around Taiwan by its H-6K bomber and Su-30 fighter jets.
The Taiwanese government responded to the drills by decrying “irresponsible” military behavior. “Such actions are irresponsible and they are not welcomed by the international community,” Presidential Office spokesman Alex Huang said on Sunday.
Experts tell the South China Morning Post they fear China may be “gearing up to take over the self-ruled island by force.” The Chinese state media outlet People’s Daily, in turn, cited government officials who insisted the drills were necessary to protect Taiwan, which China considers a province of the People’s Republic. READ MORE
