Taipei: Taiwan has reiterated its determination to attack Chinese warships and aircraft if they come within 12 nautical miles of the island, the Taiwan Defense Ministry’s combat planning chief Maj. Gen. Lin Wen-huang said on Tuesday.
The Taiwanese Defense Ministry regularly reports on the activity of warships and aircraft of the People’s Liberation Army of China (PLA) near the island. On Saturday, eight Chinese military aircraft crossed the so-called “median line” of the Taiwan Strait and were spotted 24 nautical miles from the island.
“If the PLA side continues to ignore our warnings along the way and force their way into our territorial air space and seas, we will actively strike back to safeguard national security,” Lin was quoted as saying by the Taiwan Central News Agency.
The report added that it was the first time in six months that Chinese warplanes had approached this close to the island.
Taiwan has been governed independently from mainland China since 1949. Beijing regards the island as its province, while Taiwan maintains that it is an autonomous entity but stops short of declaring independence. Beijing opposes any official foreign contacts with Taipei and regards Chinese sovereignty over the island as indisputable.
The latest escalation around Taiwan took place in April after Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen met with US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Beijing responded by launching massive three-day military drills near the island in what it called a “warning” to Taiwanese separatists and foreign powers.
UNI/SPUTNIK
