Taiwan deployed ships and fighter aircraft on Monday to monitor a second Chinese “joint combat readiness patrol” near the island within a week, as tensions continue to rise over Beijing's military activities in the region.
Taiwan's defence ministry reported detecting 21 Chinese aircraft, including J-16 fighter jets and drones, operating around the island, alongside warships conducting the patrol. The ministry released images taken by its forces, including one from an F-16 jet showing two Chinese fighters trailing a Y-20 refuelling aircraft, and another of the Chinese warship Yinchuan.
Speaking in Taipei on Tuesday, Pan Chun-kuang from the ministry's intelligence department confirmed that the Chinese combat patrol had ended, but noted that Taiwan continued to track the aircraft carrier Liaoning operating in the Western Pacific. He added that further details of Chinese activities would be released as needed.
China views Taiwan as its own territory and has intensified military pressure around the island, particularly after President Xi Jinping discussed the dispute with US President Donald Trump earlier this month. China previously labelled Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te a “separatist” and rejected his offers for talks.
Over the weekend, Taiwan reported a confrontation between its coast guard and a Chinese ship near the Pratas Islands, strategically located in the South China Sea. Additionally, Taiwan's National Security Council secretary general Joseph Wu detailed on social media that 100 Chinese ships were currently operating in the first island chain, which runs from Japan through Taiwan to the Philippines.
