TAIPEI, June 8 (Reuters) – Taiwan activated its defense systems on Thursday after 37 Chinese military aircraft were reported flying over the island’s air defense zone, some of which flew over the western Pacific, in the latest mass air incursion of Beijing.
China, which views democratically-ruled Taiwan as its own territory, has over the past three years regularly flown its air force in the air near the island, though not in Taiwan’s air territory.
Taiwan’s defense ministry said that as of 5 am (2100 GMT on Wednesday) it had detected 37 Chinese air force planes, including J-11 and J-16 fighters as well as nuclear-capable H-6 bombers. , which hovers in its southwest corner. air defense identification zone, or ADIZ.
The ADIZ is a wider area that Taiwan monitors and patrols to give its forces more time to respond to threats.
Some of the Chinese aircraft flew southeast of Taiwan and crossed the western Pacific to conduct “air surveillance and long distance navigation training”, the ministry said in a statement.
Taiwan sent its aircraft and ships to monitor and activate the land-based missile system, it added, using its usual wording for how it responds to such Chinese activity.
China’s defense ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
China completed the second phase of joint air patrols with Russia in the Western Pacific on Wednesday, following flights the previous day in the Sea of Japan and East China Sea, raising concerns in Japan over its national security.
Laura Rosenberger, chair of the American Institute in Taiwan, which oversees unofficial relations between Washington and Taipei, is visiting Taiwan this week.
On Monday, he told Taiwan media that the United States has an eternal interest in maintaining stability in the Taiwan Strait and that the United States will continue to arm the island, a source of ongoing friction in Sino-US relations.
In April, China held war games around Taiwan following Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen’s trip to the United States.
Taiwan’s government rejects China’s sovereignty claims and says only the island’s people can decide their future.
Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Tom Hogue and Raju Gopalakrishnan
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