The Washington Times is reporting that US intelligence agencies are on alert for unexpected Chinese military activities this weekend.
While there is no hint about the possible nature of such activities, they could be timed to coincide with the visit of White House National Security Adviser Thomas Donilon to Beijing.
According to the Washington Times, they could be part of the Chinese response to the US$5.8 billion arms package for Taiwan that was announced by the US last month.
Senior Washington-based US intelligence sources approached by the Taipei Times refused to discuss the issue, describing it as “too sensitive,” but they did not deny the report.
The sources said that Chinese military activity was “always a possibility,” but refused to speculate on what form it might take or just how likely it was.
As previously reported by the Taipei Times, the US is expecting to hear new protests about US arms sales to Taiwan during Donilon’s visit.
The Washington Times said that the administration of US President Barack Obama was “braced for a tough Chinese reaction.”
“The US intelligence community so far is unable to assess authoritatively just what China will do,” it said.
The newspaper said that so far Beijing has postponed the visit of Admiral Robert Willard, the commander of US forces in the Pacific, to China and blocked a visit by a US Army band.
“Recent comments by Chinese Gen. Luo Yuan [羅援], Beijing’s high-profile military hawk, has provided what defense officials say are hints of ominous things to come,” the Washington Times said.
“Intelligence analysts were left trying to discern Gen. Luo’s meaning and whether the comments signal that China’s military plans a high-profile response,” the newspaper added.
Without warning, China conducted its first test flight of a new J-20 stealth jet during US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates’ visit to Beijing in January.
“China in the past used missile tests to send political signals to its main superpower rival, so US intelligence agencies are on alert for any unexpected military activities during Donilon’s visit to China which begins this weekend,” the Washington Times said.
According to the newspaper, the US military is “ready for any provocation.”
A US Navy carrier strike group led by the USS George Washington is on patrol near the South China Sea and the assault ship USS Essex, with Marines on board, is in the Philippines Sea.
Trips for more than 100,000 international and domestic air travelers could be disrupted as China launches a military exercise around Taiwan today, Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said yesterday. The exercise could affect nearly 900 flights scheduled to enter the Taipei Flight Information Region (FIR) during the exercise window, it added. A notice issued by the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration showed there would be seven temporary zones around the Taiwan Strait which would be used for live-fire exercises, lasting from 8am to 6pm today. All aircraft are prohibited from entering during exercise, it says. Taipei FIR has 14 international air routes and
The Ministry of National Defense (MND) today released images of the military tracking China’s People's Liberation Army (PLA) movements during the latest round of Chinese drills around Taiwan. The PLA began "Justice Mission 2025" drills today, carrying out live-fire drills, simulated strikes on land and maritime targets, and exercises to blockade the nation's main ports. The exercises are to continue tomorrow, with the PLA announcing sea and air space restrictions for five zones around Taiwan for 10 hours starting from 8:30am. The ministry today released images showing a Chinese J-16 fighter jet tracked by a F-16V Block 20 jet and the
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
City buses in Taipei and New Taipei City, as well as the Taipei MRT, would on Saturday begin accepting QR code payments from five electronic payment providers, the Taipei Department of Transportation said yesterday. The new option would allow passengers to use the “transportation QR code” feature from EasyWallet, iPass Money, iCash Pay, Jkopay or PXPay Plus. Passengers should open their preferred electronic payment app, select the “transportation code” — not the regular payment code — unlock it, and scan the code at ticket readers or gates, General Planning Division Director-General Liu Kuo-chu (劉國著) said. People should move through the
RSS