Taiwan's Defense Ministry Says China Sent 37 Military Aircraft, 8 Vessels to Taiwan Strait

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Taiwanese ministry of national defense said on Monday that 37 aircraft and 8 ships of the Chinese People's Liberation Army approached the island.

"8 PLAN [People's Liberation Army Navy] vessels and 37 PLA aircraft around our surrounding region were detected today (August 29, 2022) until 1700 [09:00 GMT]," the ministry said in a statement on Twitter.

The ministry added that 12 of the detected aircraft had crossed the so-called "median line" of the Taiwan Strait, which serves as an unofficial maritime border between the island and mainland China.

The Taiwanese armed forces monitored the situation, issued radio warnings and deployed air defense missile systems, the ministry added.

Senior Colonel Shen Jinke, spokesperson for the PLA Air Force, said at a press conference on Sunday that strategic bombers and aerial tankers will continue to conduct regular patrols around Taiwan.

Shen’s statement came following reports of two US Navy ships passing through Taiwan Strait for the first time since the escalation of tensions between Beijing and Washington over the controversial visit of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taipei in early August.

China has repeatedly opposed visits of senior US officials to the island, as it considers Taiwan part of its territory and protests any direct official foreign contacts with Taipei.

Taiwan became alienated from Beijing after becoming a stronghold of the Chinese Nationalist Party (the Kuomintang) that suffered defeat to the Communist Party in a civil war in 1949. The Chinese mainland and the island resumed business and informal contacts in the late 1980s.