Chinese reconnaissance plane enters Taiwan's air defence zone as tensions escalate

A Chinese Y-8 reconnaissance plane entered the southern-western section of Taiwan's air defence identification zone on Saturday, said Taiwanese Defence Ministry.

The Chinese aircraft entered the airspace between Taiwan and the Dongsha Islands, which are controlled by Taiwan, in the South China Sea, Focus Taiwan reported,

Taiwan military responded by scrambling fighter jets to monitor the Chinese aircraft, issuing radio warnings and mobilizing air defence assets until the plane left the ADIZ, the ministry said.

According to the SCMP, air defence identification zones are early warning systems that help countries to detect incursions into their airspace.

Any aircraft entering such an area is supposed to report its route and purpose to the "host" nation, though the zones are classified as international airspace and pilots are not legally bound to make such a notification.

According to the defence ministry data, it was the fifth time this month that such an incident had occurred, following incursions on February 1, 2, 4 and 5.

The new incursions come amidst escalated tensions in the region as Beijing ramped up pressure on Taipei. Recently, China threatened that "Taiwan's independence" means war.

Wu Qian, spokesperson of China's Ministry of National Defence, on January 28 "warned" the people wanting "Taiwan independence" and said that "those who play with fire will set themselves on fire, and seeking 'Taiwan independence' means nothing but war".

According to an article by The Global Times, a Chinese state media, Taiwan's "mainland affairs council" has warned that any of the mainland's words and deeds that deliberately provoke Taiwan's bottom line may cause far-reaching effects that the mainland cannot bear.

Beijing claims full sovereignty over Taiwan, a democracy of almost 24 million people located off the southeastern coast of mainland China, despite the fact that the two sides have been governed separately for more than seven decades.

Taipei, on the other hand, has countered the Chinese aggression by increasing strategic ties with democracies including the US, which has been repeatedly opposed by Beijing.

(ANI)

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