24 Chinese Warplanes Detected Around Taiwan In Show Of Force Since Poll
NDTV
Democratic Taiwan has its own government, military and currency -- but China claims it as its territory and has never renounced the use of force to bring it under its control.
More than 20 Chinese warplanes were detected around Taiwan, with 11 crossing a sensitive median line separating the self-ruled island from China, Taipei's defence ministry said Thursday, the first significant show of force since the weekend's presidential election.
The ministry, which releases data daily on the Chinese military presence around Taiwan, said Thursday that 24 warplanes and 5 ships had been detected in the 24 hours leading up to 6 am (2200 GMT).
"11 of the detected aircraft had crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait or entered Taiwan's southwest and north (air defence identification zone)," the ministry said in a statement.
