China’s increase of military pressure around Taiwan is not legitimate and would increase tension, the US Department of State said yesterday as a surge of Chinese military activity has been detected around Taiwan before the annual Han Kuang military exercises starting next Wednesday.
The Ministry of National Defense (MND) said as of 6am today, 41 Chinese aircraft and eight navy vessels had been detected around Taiwan over the past 24 hours.
Twenty-seven of the aircraft crossed the median line and entered Taiwan’s northern, central and southwestern air defense identification zones (ADIZ), the ministry said.
Photo: CNA
The armed forces “monitored the situation and employed [patrol] aircraft, navy vessels and coastal missile systems in response to the detected activities,” the ministry said.
The US sees peace in the Taiwan Strait as an indispensable factor for the peace and prosperity of the international community, a spokesperson of the US Department of State told the Central News Agency yesterday.
China’s military threats against Taiwan are irresponsible, the official said, urging Beijing to avoid taking further actions that could undermine peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and the region.
The US would continue to support Taiwan in the face of China’s coercion in military, economy and diplomacy, the official said.
In addition, a Chinese carrier rocket flew through the southwestern section of Taiwan's ADIZ yesterday but remained outside the Earth's atmosphere and posed no threat to Taiwan, the MND said.
The rocket, launched at 5:37pm from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwestern China's Sichuan Province, was carrying a satellite as it headed toward the western Pacific, the MND said.
The defense ministry said it closely tracked the launch using its joint intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems, and appropriate alert and response measures were in place throughout.
The MND had announced the previous day that the launch was expected to occur at 5:35pm yesterday, with the rocket passing through Taiwan's ADIZ on a western Pacific trajectory.
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