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People’s Liberation Army sends 24 warplanes to Taiwan’s air zone in show of force
- It was the 20th time PLA planes had entered the air zone this month, according to Taiwan’s defence ministry
- The incursion came as China’s Maritime Safety Administration reported the PLA was having live-fire drills in the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea
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As many as 24 mainland Chinese warplanes entered Taiwan’s air defence identification zone on Thursday.
The warplanes – including 18 fighter jets, two bombers, two anti-submarine aircraft, a transport and an electronic warfare plane – entered the southwest of the self-ruled island’s ADIZ, according to Taiwan’s defence ministry.
“In response, our air force scrambled jets, issued radio warnings and deployed air defence missile systems to monitor the activities of the planes,” the ministry said in a statement.
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Observers said the show of force – the largest since China sent 28 warplanes to the same area – could be aimed at showing off the ability of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to carry out joint manoeuvres, while sending a signal to the US and its allies Beijing would not back off on issues relating to national sovereignty.
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A map released by the ministry showed some of the jets flew in a long, L-shaped path at Taiwan’s southwest ADIZ.
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It was the 20th time PLA planes had entered Taiwan’s ADIZ this month, according to the ministry.
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