Taiwan Strait middle line is crossed by 71 Chinese aircraft

 On Saturday, in retaliation for President Tsai Ing-meeting wen's with the US House of Representatives speaker, 71 Chinese military aircraft violated the delicate median line of the Taiwan Strait.

The three-day drills were widely anticipated after Beijing denounced Tsai's Wednesday meeting with Speaker Kevin McCarthy in Los Angeles. They were announced the day after Tsai returned from the United States.

China has never renounced using force to seize control of the island nation of Taiwan, which is administered democratically. China's assertions are firmly rejected by Taiwan's government.

Beijing's declaration also came just after prominent European politicians visited China.

The People's Liberation Army announced that it had begun the combat readiness patrols and "Joint Sword" exercises in and around Taiwan after having earlier stated that they would take place "as planned" in the Taiwan Strait and to Taiwan's north, south, and east.

"This is a significant warning to the Taiwan independence separatist forces and external forces' cooperation and provocation, and it is a required move to preserve national sovereignty and territorial integrity," the Chinese army's Eastern Theatre Command said in a statement.

The median line that typically acts as an informal barrier between the two sides was crossed by 71 Chinese aircraft, including fighter jets and bombers, as of 4 p.m. on Saturday, according to Taiwan's Defense Ministry. Nine Chinese ships were also seen crossing the line.

The ministry claimed that China was using Tsai's visit to the US "as an excuse to conduct military exercises, which has significantly undermined regional peace, stability, and security."

"To preserve national sovereignty and national security, the military will respond in a cool, collected, and serious manner, and will stand vigil and monitor in accordance with the principles of "not escalating nor disputes."

Using exciting martial music as a soundtrack, Chinese state television broadcast what it claimed to be footage of the drills. It showed warships at sea and mobile missile launchers being prepared, but it did not show missiles being shot. Fighter planes were believed to have launched with live ammunition.

Reuters was unable to determine the location or date of the shooting.

In Taiwan, where residents are accustomed to Chinese threats, there was no widespread anxiety over the drills.

If the meeting with McCarthy—who is second in line to succeed the US president after the vice president—took happened, China had warned vague repercussions. During Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taipei in August, Beijing held war exercises near Taiwan that included live missile launches.

According to a senior Taiwanese official acquainted with security arrangements in the area, the morning missions' aircraft only briefly crossed the median line.

In Taiwan, where residents are accustomed to Chinese threats, there was no widespread anxiety over the drills.

If the meeting with McCarthy—who is second in line to succeed the US president after the vice president—took happened, China had warned vague repercussions. During Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taipei in August, Beijing held war exercises near Taiwan that included live missile launches.

According to a senior Taiwanese official acquainted with security arrangements in the area, the morning missions' aircraft only briefly crossed the medin line.

Because the government sees Sai as a separatist, she has frequently volunteered to hold negotiations with China but has been rejected. She claims that the future of Taiwan rests solely on its people.

In an article published on Saturday, The People's Daily, the official publication of China's ruling Communist Party, stated that the government has "a strong power to thwart any sort of Taiwan independence secession."

The Chinese government's actions to defend territorial integrity and national sovereignty were all justified by law, according to the statement.

China has not yet stated if it will also hold missile drills, unlike in August. China issued a chart indicating which nautical regions around Taiwan it will be firing into when it announced the prior drills.

According to the security source, China generally conducts military drills in April.

Given that the McCarthy meeting took place in the United States, Taiwanese officials had anticipated a milder response, but they had also stated that they could not completely rule out the chance that China would stage additional drills.

Hours after French President Emmanuel Macron departed China, where he had meetings with President Xi Jinping and other top officials, China made their announcement. Beijing was asked by Macron to reason with Russia on the conflict in Ukraine.

Ursula von der Leyen, the head of the European Union, who is in China this week to meet with Xi, stated that it was crucial for the Taiwan Strait to remain stable.

China's official account of the meeting quotes Xi as saying that expecting China to make concessions on Taiwan was "wishful thinking" in response.

Along with announcing the manoeuvres near Taiwan, China's defence ministry also posted images of Xi meeting Macron and von der Leyen on its web page.

According to the Taiwan security source, China's recent attempts to win over foreign leaders failed once the drills were revealed.

"All those efforts have disappeared overnight and have been a waste of time since the announcement of drills in the strait."