Taiwan’s defence ministry claimed to have spotted Chinese military aircraft, including fighter jets and bombers, flying to the south of the island on their way to an exercise in the Pacific Ocean for the second day in a row.
The island’s military on Sunday morning detected 37 Chinese warplanes, including J-16 fighter jets, nuclear-capable H-6 bombers and drones, according to a defence ministry statement. Of those, 35 aircraft flew southwest, south and southeast of Taiwan into the western Pacific Ocean for long-range exercises, the ministry said.
On Saturday, the ministry said that China conducted another “joint alert patrol” involving warships and aircraft near Taiwan. However, the Chinese side did not respond to a request for comment on the missions, which come just days before Tuesday’s US election.
China regards Taiwan as its own territory, despite strong objections from the government in Taipei, and regularly sends its military forces into the skies and waters near the island in an attempt to enforce its sovereignty claims. China last conducted a major military exercise around the island last month.
