Several Chinese aircraft and naval vessels have entered the Taiwan Strait, crossing the Taiwan Air Defense Identification Zone, its government announced early Wednesday morning.
“16 PLA planes and 3 PLAN ships around Taiwan were detected by 6 am,” his government said, prompting them to send naval vessels in response.
The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is China’s official designation for military forces, including naval forces (PLAN) controlled by the Communist Party of China (CPC).
“[The Republic of China’s Armed Forces] they have been monitoring the situation and responding to these activities with PAC aircraft, naval vessels and land-based missile systems,” the Taiwanese government added.
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Taipei’s defense ministry also provided flight routes for Chinese naval vessels, including aircraft identification.
“5 of the detected aircraft (J-10*2, Y-8 EW, BZK-005 UAV RECCE and Y-8 ASW) had crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait and entered Taiwan’s ADIZ SO, flight paths as illustrated,” the government wrote with a photo of flight paths dated Nov. 15.
On Monday, President Joe Biden told reporters he “doesn’t think there is any imminent attempt by China to invade Taiwan,” following a meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
Biden also said a new cold war with China will not occur as the US continues to communicate with its leaders.
“I absolutely believe there is no need for a new Cold War,” Biden said. “I have met Xi Jinping many times and we have been sincere and clear with each other across the board. And I don’t think there is any imminent attempt by China to invade Taiwan.”
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He added, “And I made it clear that our policy on Taiwan hasn’t changed at all. It’s the exact same position we’ve had. I made it clear that we want to see the cross-trade issues resolved peacefully and so it never happened to come to that.”
Taiwan’s precautionary finding on Wednesday comes as China continues to conduct war games in the region to test its latest military technologies.
Earlier this month, Taiwan was forced to scramble jets and its military defense system after it similarly detected 11 Chinese planes near its island.
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The Nov. 5 sighting came just days after senior PLA officials said its servicemen were “on full-time standby” for a potential war in the Straits.
US officials and its international partners have warned the Chinese government of military escalation and some have promised to intervene in the event of a Chinese invasion.
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In October, Jinping said he would continue to “completely improve war training and preparedness.”
“We must be fully prepared to respond to external interference and serious incidents related to Taiwan independence through non-peaceful means and other necessary measures, always maintain a high state of readiness, and be ready for war at all times,” Major General Liu Yantong, the head of the Central Military Commission’s research bureau added at the time.
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Taiwan identifies itself as a sovereign nation with democratic values. This prioritization of democracy distinguishes itself from mainland China, which is ruled by communists, and has allowed Taiwan to attract international partnerships.
Most of these partners, including the United States, have officially recognized Taiwan as a territory of China. The United States and the United Nations both agree on the One China policy.
Caitlin McFall of Fox News contributed to this report.