Taiwan says Chinese warplanes, US aircraft entered its air defence zone
- Island’s military sent radio warnings to People’s Liberation Army jets and missile systems were deployed to monitor them
- Beijing last week called PLA activities in the Taiwan Strait a ‘stern response’ to external interference and independence forces
Seven People’s Liberation Army warplanes and a US reconnaissance aircraft entered Taiwan’s air defence identification zone on Sunday, the island’s defence ministry said, as tensions continue to rise across the strait.
They were followed hours later by two J-11 bombers in the same area, it said separately.
The defence ministry also said a US reconnaissance plane was in the same southwestern part of the air defence zone while the five PLA warplanes were there, without giving further details.
It was the first time the ministry has mentioned the presence of US military aircraft since mid-September, when it began giving almost daily reports on Chinese military activities in its ADIZ.
01:01
Taiwan air force conducts military drills after incursion by mainland Chinese warplanes
Air defence identification zones are early warning systems that help countries to detect incursions into their airspace. Any aircraft entering such an area is supposed to report its route and purpose to the “host” nation, though the zones are classified as international airspace and pilots are not legally bound to make such a notification.