The government would mount an iron-clad defense of the nation’s sovereignty and its people’s safety, Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said yesterday after a Chinese warplane breached the nation’s air defense identification zone on Thursday night.
The warplane entered the nation’s southwestern air space twice, at 7:35pm and 7:36pm, and the Republic of China Air Force dispatched an aircraft to shadow and evict it after broadcasting a warning, the Ministry of National Defense said on Thursday.
The incident marked a rare occurrence of a Chinese warplane entering the zone after nightfall.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
The ministry on March 17 said that two Chinese aircraft on March 16 conducted a night-time drill near Taiwan’s southwestern airspace.
China is experiencing a resurgence of COVID-19 and heavy floods, but Beijing is not concentrating its energy on taking care of its people, Su said on the sidelines of an event in Taipei.
Instead it is sending warplanes to disrupt regional peace and put pressure on neighboring nations, which have condemned its actions, he said.
Taiwan, as a sovereign nation, would resolutely defend its airspace and protect its people, he said.
He urged Beijing to concentrate on caring for its people, rather than disturbing regional peace.
A military observer in southern Taiwan surnamed Hsu (許) said that Chinese aircraft have intruded into the nation’s airspace at least 20 times this year.
Thursday’s action was likely triggered by the six recent incidents involving E-8C battle command aircraft from the US flying over the Taiwan Strait, as well as large-scale military drills that the US and its allies have been conducting in the South China Sea, Hsu said.
SCHEDULE: The delegation is due to meet with President Tsai Ing-wen this morning and witness the signing of an MOU on bilateral health cooperation in the afternoon US Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Alex Azar yesterday arrived in Taipei aboard a US government plane at the head of a delegation that is the highest-level visit by a US official since Washington switched diplomatic recognition to China in 1979. Azar’s flight landed at Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) at 4:48pm, nearly one hour earlier than scheduled, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The apron where it landed is reserved for military aircraft, the Songshan Air Force Base Command said. The members of Azar’s delegation included HHS Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response Robert Kadlec, HHS Chief of Staff Brian
ALEX AZAR: The first visit by a head of the Department of Health and Human Services would strictly observe the CECC’s special regulations, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said US Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Alex Azar is to lead a delegation to Taiwan — the highest-level visit by a US Cabinet official since the two sides cut formal relations in 1979. The plan was announced yesterday morning by the US Department of Health and Human Services and confirmed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA). Beijing has expressed its concerns to Washington, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Wang Wenbin (汪文斌) said later yesterday. Taiwan and the US only issued statements saying that the visit would happen “in the coming days.” MOFA said that due to security concerns, it would
‘CROSS-STRAIT CONSIDERATIONS’: Groups said that the Ministry of Education’s policies excluded Chinese and students should not be blocked over political issues The Taiwan International Student Movement yesterday said it would protest today outside the Ministry of Education in Taipei against a policy that excludes some Chinese students from returning to Taiwan amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Since June 17, the ministry has allowed foreign students from 19 “low risk” and “medium-low risk” countries and regions to enter Taiwan. On July 22, it announced that it was relaxing restrictions to include students from all countries and regions who are graduating this semester and on Wednesday it further expanded entry to students enrolled in degree programs. A letter sent by the ministry on Wednesday to universities did
The military last week sent “no small number” of Marine Corps officers to the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Island, 東沙群島) following reports of a Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) drill targeting the islands scheduled for this month. In an interview with Hong Kong’s Bauhinia Magazine published on Saturday last week, PLA National Defense University professor Li Daguang (李大光) confirmed that the Chinese army was planning to stage a simulated invasion of the Pratas Islands in the South China Sea this month. The islands comprise three atolls, with Pratas Island, at 1.74km2, being the largest. They lie southwest of Taiwan proper in the South
RSS