Taipei authorities first announced Thursday that they had detected 23 fighter jets and five Chinese warships around the island of Taiwan. The devices and buildings were spotted between 6 a.m. Wednesday and the same time Thursday, Taipei said. “Eight of the planes crossed the median line” which bisects the Taiwan Strait, a narrow 180-kilometer sea lane between the island and mainland China.
Beijing, which does not recognize this line, claims Taiwan as part of its territory and frequently sends planes and ships to its surroundings. A Chinese fleet of seven ships and five coast guard boats were then detected around Kinmen Island, a small island dependent on Taiwan very close to mainland China, the Taiwanese coast guard said Thursday.
“Around 3:00 p.m. (07:00 GMT), a fleet of seven vessels (…) belonging to China’s maritime and fisheries departments entered our restricted waters,” said a statement from the Taiwanese coast guard. Four other Chinese coast guard vessels did the same and a fifth “sailed outside our waters”, they added. The ships departed about 90 minutes later, the coast guard said, noting that this was “the fourth formation of Chinese coast guard ships sailing in Kinmen waters” in May.
It was also the first time that Chinese coast guard vessels “and other Chinese official vessels” sailed together at the same time. “This situation has seriously damaged the peace, stability and safety of navigation between the two sides of the Strait, has hurt the feelings of people on both sides of the Strait, and does not contribute to peaceful exchanges between the two sides of the Strait. Taiwan Strait,” the coast guard said.
The presence of these Chinese aircraft and buildings coincides with the passage on Wednesday of an American warship, the USS Halsey, through the strait. The United States destroyer “conducted a routine crossing on May 8 in waters where the freedoms of navigation on the high seas and overflight apply in accordance with international law,” the United States Navy communicated Wednesday.
This crossing “demonstrates the commitment of the United States to defend the principle of freedom of navigation for all nations”, according to the same Source which adds: “No member of the international community should be intimidated or forced to abandon their rights and freedoms”.
The military command for eastern China said Wednesday evening that it had ordered its naval and air forces to “monitor the crossing of the American ship.” “Chinese troops there remain on alert at all times and resolutely protect national sovereignty and security,” responded its spokesperson Li Xi in a statement.
China has stepped up patrols around Kinmen after a series of deadly fishing incidents earlier this year.
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