Robert Besser
27 Jan 2022, 14:03 GMT+10
TAIPEI, Taiwan: In its largest sortie in 2022, China sent 39 warplanes towards Taiwan on January 24, amidst tensions over the self-ruled island's future, and as the U.S. is asserting its presence in the region.
According to Taiwan's defense ministry, the Chinese formation included 24 J-16 fighter jets and 10 J-10 jets, as well as other support and electronic warfare aircraft.
Taiwan's air force scrambled its own jets and tracked the Chinese planes on its air defense radar systems, the ministry added.
The U.S. military said two of its carrier strike groups, led by USS Carl Vinson and USS Abraham Lincoln, were sailing in the South China Sea to engage in anti-submarine, air and combat readiness operations.
Taiwan and China separated after the Chinese civil war in 1949, but China claims the island as its own territory.
Beijing has used diplomatic and military means to isolate and intimidate Taiwan, but the U.S. has continued to support Taiwan by selling it advanced weapons and fighter planes.
Over the past year and a half, Chinese pilots have been flying towards Taiwan almost daily, with the largest sortie being 56 warplanes on a single day last October.
Tensions have been high since Tsai Ing-wen was elected as Taiwanese president in 2016, with Beijing responding by cutting off previously established communications with the island's government.
Tsai's predecessor was friendly to China and had endorsed Beijing's claim that the two countries are part of a single Chinese nation.
Get a daily dose of New Orleans Sun news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to New Orleans Sun.
More InformationSAN FRANCISCO, California: General Motors' self-driving Cruise division has begun charging fares for driverless rides in San Francisco.Earlier this month, ...
NEW YORK, New York - The euphoria on Wall Street of late last week was absent on Monday as all ...
WASHINGTON D.C.: In May, sales of new U.S. single-family homes unexpectedly increased, but this is expected to be temporary, as ...
LONDON, England: British Airways' staff at London's Heathrow airport has voted to strike due to pay disputes. Amidst an already ...
SYDNEY, NSW, Australia - Stocks across Asia rose on Monday, in a positive start to the week.The U.S. dollar was ...
TOKYO, Japan: Amidst semiconductor shortages and COVID-19 parts supply disruptions, Toyota has reduced its July global production target by 50,000 ...
MOSCOW, Russia: The UK newspaper, the Telegraph, has been blocked in Russia, following a request from the Russian prosecutor-general.The TASS ...
LAHORE, Pakistan - An Airbus 320 carrying 171 passengers narrowly avoided an accident at Allama Iqbal International Airport, Pakistan's second-largest ...
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. President Joe Biden on Friday vowed to "do all in my power" to protect a woman's ...
YANGON, Myanmar - According to military-run media, a junta delegation discussed nuclear technology collaboration with a Russian state-owned atomic energy ...
DHAKA, Bangladesh - The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is providing more than Tk2.3 crore in emergency funding ...
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia: Cambodian villagers on the Mekong River have caught a stingray fish weighing 661 pounds, which is the ...