China on Saturday and yesterday sent a record number of military aircraft into the nation’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ), in what analysts said was an attempt to flex its military might for US President Joe Biden.
Thirteen Chinese warplanes flew into Taiwan’s southwestern ADIZ on Saturday and 15 entered yesterday, the highest number observed in a single day this year, the Ministry of National Defense said.
On Saturday, eight Xian H-6K bombers, four Shenyang J-16 fighters and a Y-8 anti-submarine aircraft, entered the ADIZ, while yesterday there were two Y-8s, two Su-30s, four J-16s, six J-10 fighters and a Y-8 reconnaissance aircraft, the ministry said.
The intrusions mark the 19th and 20th days this month that China’s military has sent aircraft into the area, as Beijing continues to intensify its military pressure on Taiwan.
Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a senior analyst at the government-funded Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the incursion was designed to send a message to the new Biden administration, following his nomination of senior defense, foreign affairs and homeland security officials who have taken a tough stance toward Beijing.
China has continued to beef up its military intimidation toward Taiwan through military deployments since the second half of last year, Su said.
However, unlike last year’s efforts, which featured mostly slow-flying aircraft for defensive purposes, Saturday’s incursion involved a large number of bombers and fast-moving fighters, usually used for offensive purposes, Su said.
The deployment was meant to send a warning to Washington, as a US aircraft carrier group was reportedly operating near the Philippine Sea and the South China Sea, he added.
Su said he believes Beijing has made a strategic mistake, as the operation only proves the so-called “China threat theory” that sees China using its burgeoning power to destabilize regional security.
Another institute analyst, Shu Hsiao-huang (舒孝煌), said that China only sends large-scale air deployments to airspace near Taiwan on “special occasions.”
The incursion was Beijing showing its dissatisfaction toward the Biden administration’s decision to invite Representative to the US Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) to attend his inauguration on Wednesday last week, Shu said.
Although this is not the first time a Taiwanese representative to the US has attended a US presidential inauguration, previous attendees gained entry informally, through the courtesy of US legislators, sources familiar with the matter said.
Beijing’s move is aimed at testing the Biden administration’s Asia-Pacific strategy and to counter US military missions in the Bashi Channel between Taiwan and the Philippines, Shu said.
ANOTHER EMERGES: The CWA yesterday said this year’s fourth storm of the typhoon season had formed in the South China Sea, but was not expected to affect Taiwan Tropical Storm Gaemi has intensified slightly as it heads toward Taiwan, where it is expected to affect the country in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 8am yesterday, the 120km-radius storm was 800km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving at 9kph northwest, the agency said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued tonight at the earliest, it said, adding that the storm is projected to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday. Gaemi’s potential effect on Taiwan remains unclear, as that would depend on its direction, radius and intensity, forecasters said. Former Weather Forecast
As COVID-19 cases in Japan have been increasing for 10 consecutive weeks, people should get vaccinated before visiting the nation, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said. The centers reported 773 hospitalizations and 124 deaths related to COVID-19 in Taiwan last week. CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) on Tuesday said the number of weekly COVID-19 cases reported in Japan has been increasing since mid-May and surpassed 55,000 cases from July 8 to July 14. The average number of COVID-19 patients at Japan’s healthcare facilities that week was also 1.39 times that of the week before and KP.3 is the dominant
The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) working group for Taiwan-related policies is likely to be upgraded to a committee-level body, a report commissioned by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said. As Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) is increasingly likely to upgrade the CCP’s Central Leading Group for Taiwan Affairs, Taiwanese authorities should prepare by researching Xi and the CCP, the report said. At the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the CCP, which ended on Thursday last week, the party set a target of 2029 for the completion of some tasks, meaning that Xi is likely preparing to
US-CHINA TRADE DISPUTE: Despite Beijing’s offer of preferential treatment, the lure of China has dimmed as Taiwanese and international investors move out Japan and the US have become the favored destinations for Taiwanese graduates as China’s attraction has waned over the years, the Ministry of Labor said. According to the ministry’s latest income and employment advisory published this month, 3,215 Taiwanese university graduates from the class of 2020 went to Japan, surpassing for the first time the 2,881 graduates who went to China. A total of 2,300 graduates from the class of 2021 went to the US, compared with the 2,262 who went to China, the document showed. The trend continued for the class of 2023, of whom 1,460 went to Japan, 1,334 went to