Chinese warplanes entered Taiwan's airspace

China has again sent several fighter jets to Taiwan's air defense zone. Among the 18 Chinese planes were 12 J-16 and J-11 fighter jets and two H-6 bombers, the Defense Ministry said in Taipei last Thursday. It was the second worst incident of this type since the beginning of the year. According to Taipei, 39 Chinese planes entered Taiwan's air defense zone in January.

Taiwan's Defense Ministry said it in turn sent out planes today to send out warnings. In addition, the missile defense was activated. Taiwan only began releasing its air defense zone violation data in September 2020. The zone is significantly larger than the island's actual airspace and partially overlaps with China's.

Beijing regards Taiwan as a renegade province that should be brought under its own control by force if necessary. In total, Taiwan recorded 969 invading Chinese fighter jets last year. The peak so far was in October, when a total of 149 warplanes entered Taiwan's air defense zone in the four days surrounding China's National Day. Violations by more than 370 Chinese aircraft have already been registered this year.

Source: ORF

Photo: UPI.