A Chinese fleet of seven ships and five coast guard boats were detected around Kinmen Island, an island dependent on Taiwan very close to mainland China, the Taiwanese coast guard said Thursday.
“Around 3 p.m. (9 a.m. in Paris), a fleet of seven vessels (…) belonging to the maritime and fisheries departments of China entered our regulated waters,” said a statement from the Taiwanese coast guard, adding that four other Chinese coast guard vessels had done the same and a fifth had “sailed outside our waters”.
The Taiwanese Ministry of Defense had already announced that it had detected 23 fighter planes around the autonomous island. The devices and buildings were spotted between 6 a.m. Wednesday (midnight Thursday in Paris) and Thursday at the same time. “Eight of the planes crossed the median line” which bisects the Taiwan Strait, a narrow 180 km 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.
The presence of these Chinese aircraft and vessels coincides with the passage of an American warship, the USS Halsey, through the strait on Wednesday. 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 US Navy communicated on Wednesday.
This crossing “demonstrates the commitment of the United States to defend the freedom of navigation for all nations as a principle”, according to the same source which adds: “No member of the international community should be intimidated or forced to abandon their rights and freedoms.
Chinese troops on alert
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”. “The (Chinese) troops on the ground remain on alert at all times and resolutely protect national sovereignty and security,” responded its spokesperson Li Xi in a statement.
The new Taiwanese president-elect, Lai Ching-te, won January’s presidential election despite warnings from Beijing that it would bring “war and decline” to the island. He must be invested on May 20.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic declared Wednesday in Belgrade, during a speech welcoming his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, that “Taiwan is China,” according to state television RTS. “We have a clear and simple position regarding China’s territorial integrity,” he told a crowd outside government offices. “Yes, Taiwan is China,” stressed the Serbian leader.
