On Tuesday, 28 aircraft from the Chinese Air Force flew into Taiwan’s identification zone. The incident joins a long line of Chinese provocations against other countries in the South China Sea.
According to the Taiwanese Ministry of Defense, Tuesday’s flights are the biggest Chinese airstrike against the island state since authorities began reporting such incidents.
The Chinese aircraft fleet of 28 aircraft consisted of both fighters, bombers and aircraft used for electronic warfare and submarine hunting. Tuesday’s violations broke the previous “record” set on April 12 this year when 25 Chinese planes flew into the Taiwan identification zone, according to CNN.
According to the Taiwanese authorities, the Chinese planes have flown very close to the island of Taiwan itself. Some of the planes are said to have rounded the southern tip of the island.
Taiwan responded by sending fighter jets to identify and intercept the Chinese navy. At the same time, Taiwanese air defense missiles were prepared.
Not just Taiwan
It is not just Taiwan that is struggling with Chinese provocations in the air. On May 31, 16 Chinese planes flew into Malaysia’s economic zone. This was discovered by the Malaysian military, which responded by sending fighter jets to intercept the Chinese planes.
The Malaysian Air Force describes the incident as a “serious threat to national sovereignty and aviation security”, according to CNN.
Also incidents at sea
Several countries in the South China Sea claim overlapping sea areas in the region, including China, Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei and the Philippines. This has led to a number of incidents in which different countries have accused each other of operating in sea areas over which several states claim sovereignty.
China and Vietnam have long disagreed on what is Vietnamese and what is Chinese territory in the South China Sea. This is reflected in a series of incidents in which the Chinese Coast Guard has arrested Vietnamese fishermen for fishing on Chinese territory.
According to Reuters such an incident took place on June 2 last year when a vessel from the Chinese Coast Guard deliberately crashed into and sank a Vietnamese fishing boat and arrested the crew. Both Vietnam and China claim ownership of the sea area in question.
Øystrid
The core of the conflict among the countries along the coast of the South China Sea has its origins in the dispute over who is entitled to the two archipelagos of the Spratly Islands and the Paracel Islands.
The archipelagos come with huge sea areas, but only China claims the entire sea area. The other mentioned countries in the region do require only parts of the area.
Territorial requirements in the South China Sea. Map designed by Voice of America. Via Wikimedia Commons (public domain).
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