This is the largest deployment recorded this year. Thirty-six Chinese military planes were detected around Taiwan in the last 24 hours, the island's Ministry of Defense announced on Friday March 22, in reaction, according to analysts, to visits by a Taiwanese official in Europe.
Taiwan is an autonomous island that Beijing claims as part of its territory and which it wants to seize one day, by force if necessary.
Friday's deployment, even larger than that of the day before, is in line with what experts call "gray zone" actions, tactics of intimidation without going as far as war, which have multiplied since the 2016 election of President Tsai Ing-wen.
Tensions with China have also increased since the presidential election of January 13, won by the current vice-president Lai Ching-te, little appreciated by Beijing.
Thirty-six Chinese military aircraft and six warships were detected around Taiwan in the last 24 hours up to 6 a.m. local Friday (10 p.m. GMT Thursday), the island's defense ministry said Friday.
“Thirteen of the aircraft crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait,” the ministry said, an unofficial demarcation between China and Taiwan that the former does not recognize.
The previous evening, the ministry announced that 20 fighter planes, drones and transport planes had been detected.
Earlier, 32 military aircraft were sighted, in a 24-hour period up to 6 a.m. Thursday.
Before Lai Ching-te's election in January, Beijing warned he would bring "war and decline" to the island.
Lai Ching-te is due to take office on May 20 alongside Vice President-elect Hsiao Bi-khim of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).
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Diplomatic ballet
Hsiao Bi-khim, Taiwan's former de facto ambassador to the United States, has made visits to the European Union in recent days, including the Czech Republic and the European Parliament in Strasbourg.
“Our fight for freedom and democracy is more shared than ever, and the Taiwanese people can be assured that they will always find dear friends among Europeans,” wrote French MEP Dominique Riquet, a member of the centrist Renew group, on the social network X on Thursday, according to a translation from English.
China criticized Ms. Hsiao's visit to the Czech Republic on Tuesday, accusing her of trying to serve "the goal of Taiwan independence", a red line for Beijing.
According to analyst Wen-ti Sung, Beijing's renewed military activity could be a "show of force to convey its dissatisfaction with Taiwan's growing international engagement."
"If this can discourage other international leaders from meeting Ms. Hsiao in the future, that's a win for Beijing," he told AFP.
Military expert Su Tzu-yun also cited other reasons for Beijing's discontent, including the recent meeting in Manila between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos.
China and the Philippines both claim sovereignty over competing areas in the South China Sea.
Earlier this week, Antony Blinken said the United States was sticking to its "ironclad" commitments to defend its ally, triggering a strong reaction from Beijing.
"China's behavior is not only directed against Taiwan, but Taiwan will be the one that will come under the most pressure," Su, a military expert at the Taiwan Institute for National Defense and Research, told AFP. in terms of security.
Incidents at sea between Beijing and Taiwan have further added to tensions.
On February 14 in particular, a ship was chased by the Taiwanese coast guard for having, according to them, entered the waters of Kinmen, a small archipelago administered by Taipei. Two people lost their lives during the collision.
Beijing accused the Taiwanese authorities of “seeking to evade their responsibilities, while Taipei highlighted the erratic behavior of the boat.
With AFP
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