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Taiwan detects large number of Chinese aircraft, army ships approaching its territory

According to the statement, the Taiwanese Army responded with the use of aircraft, ships, and land-based surface-to-air missile systems to monitor the targets

HONG KONG, November 23. /TASS/. Taiwan's armed forces have recorded 25 aircraft and eight ships of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) approaching the island over the day, the Taiwan Defense Ministry said in a statement on its website.

According to the statement, 12 aircraft "had crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait or entered Taiwan’s southwest and southeast ADIZ. (air defense identification zone)." These included six J-10 fighter jets, two J-16s, one Y-8 anti-submarine aircraft, one Y-9 electronic warfare aircraft, and two H-6 strategic bombers.

According to the statement, the Taiwanese Army responded with the use of aircraft, ships, and land-based surface-to-air missile systems to monitor the targets.

On September 18, Taiwan's armed forces said they recorded 103 PLA warplanes flying near the island overnight. This marked the largest operation of its kind since at least August of last year. According to the Taiwan Defense Department's annual report released earlier, PLA aircraft and ships began crossing the Taiwan Strait midline and entering the island's air defense identification zone much more frequently after then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taipei on August 2-3, 2022.

Taiwan has been governed by its own administration since 1949, when remnants of the Kuomintang forces led by Chiang Kai-shek (1887-1975) fled there after being defeated in the Chinese Civil War. Beijing considers Taiwan to be a Chinese province.

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